Anat Abhabhirom, adviser to the BTS board, yesterday said this would be the first fare adjustment in the seven years the Skytrain has been in operation. He said the increase was not expected to affect the number of commuters.

The new fares will start from Bt15, and an additional Bt5 will be charged for every two stations. Those travelling more than 10 stations will be subject to the maximum charge of Bt40.

The current fares range from Bt10 to Bt40.

BANG NA-CHON BURI  : Thap Chang toll likely to return

The Highways Department plans to seek Cabinet approval this month to start charging commuters again at the Thap Chang checkpoint on the Bang Na-Chon Buri expressway, saying the toll exemption has unexpectedly boosted traffic and led to congestion.

Chaisawat Kittipornpaiboon, permanent secretary-designate at the Transport Ministry, yesterday said that since the toll was lifted, the number of vehicles had increased by 20,000 per day.

"We had decided to scrap the toll fee to alleviate traffic in front of the checkpoint. But now the highway has to accommodate 90,000 vehicles per day, which causes traffic jams throughout the expressway," he said.

CHIANG MAI  :CP builds Bt30m garden for King

Charoen Pokphand Group (CP Group), the country's largest agricultural conglomerate, has spent more than Bt30 million in transforming a two-rai plot in Chiang Mai at the Royal Flora Ratchaphruek 2006 - the International Horticultural Exposition for His Majesty the King - into a showcase of the success of integrated farming projects implemented under the King's "New Theory" concept.

The group has presented its Exposition and Garden for the King under the theme of "Seven Careers for Seven Ways of Income" under the Royal Initiative Integrated Farming Projects.

"This fits well into the CP Group's motto of 'Farmers are Our Life-Long Partners'. We, therefore, are very glad to share this success with the public at the Royal Flora Ratchaphruek 2006," Dhanin Chearavanont, chairman and CEO, said this week.

SIAM CITY BANK :New president by mid-month

Siam City Bank will appoint its new president in the middle of this month, the winner being selected from three candidates by the board of directors, the bank said this week.

Among the candidates are Lersuk Chuladesa, the bank's first senior vice president, and Chulakorn Singhakowin, ex-president of the Bank of Asia, which has been merged into United Overseas Bank (Thai).

The bank's labour union is currently protesting against the potential appointment of Chulakorn, saying they would prefer that the new president be selected from Siam City Bank executives.