Mainland Southeast Asia: Turmoil and Peace - Dragons and Tigers: A Geography of South, East and Southeast Asia - page 431

in the rich Chao Praya rice region. The government is
highly centralized, the city is the spiritual center of the
nation, and it is the residence of the highly esteemed
royal family .
Bangkok is a rapidly industrializing city . Economies
of agglomeration are supported by a significant informal
sector. Urbanization has spread from the Bangkok Metro-
politan Area (BMA) into the Bangkok Metropolitan Re-
gion (BMR), which comprises five provinces
circumscribing the city . The BMR contains 15 million
people. T Transportation, water, and utility costs are lower
in Bangkok than elsewhere in the country . Labor is more
productive because of the higher educational levels and
greater experience of workers. The city attracts labor-
intensive, export activities. Smaller firms are concen-
trated in the BMA where land is more expensive. Larger
firms prefer the cheaper land of the BMR. More than a
third of Thailand' s manufacturing enterprises are located
in the BMR.
Ribbon development has extruded onto agricultural
land. Rice-producing and other agricultural areas are
being displaced by industry , housing estates, and recre-
ational facilities such as golf courses. Thailand has more
golf courses than any other Southeast Asian country .
Although development is clustered in the BMR, numerous
benefits flow from this wealth, including upgraded
health and education systems and improved social and
physical infrastructure throughout the country .
Rapid industrialization has taken its toll on the envi-
ronment. Air and water pollution are severe and traffic
congestion is among the worst in Asia. These seemingly
unmanageable problems are constraints on development.

Y et construction continues as profits are made in the de-
velopment process rather than from the final product.
Many construction projects are joint ventures with
Japanese firms.
Aside from air and water pollution and inadequate
waste disposal services, Bangkok is also sinking. As a
consequence of overdrawing of well water, the city is
experiencing land subsidence. It is sinking at a rate of
4 inches (10 cm) a year. In fact, some areas have sub-
sided more than 3 feet (.9 m) since the 1950s. Global
warming will only exacerbate the problem.
The population of Bangkok fluctuates daily and sea-
sonally . An estimated 1 million people commute into the
city every day . In February , a slack agricultural period,
many workers move to the city in search of temporary
jobs in the informal sector of the economy .
In Bangkok, an estimated 4 million cars and 1.5
million motorcycles are in the city every day . The num-
ber of cars is rising by 1,000 a month. Nearly half the
traffic police are undergoing treatment for respiratory
disease. A commuter spends an average of 1,026
hours—44 days a year--in traffic (Figure 15-11). Aver-
age speeds are around 6 miles (10 km) an hour. Gas sta-
tions sell Comfort 100, a portable toilet for the motorist
stuck in traffic jams.
T Traffic congestion is only getting worse because of the
Thai' s new obsession with owning a car. Car ownership
has become an enormous status symbol even among the
lower middle-class who can barely make their payments.
Road surfaces account for only 8.5 percent of urban
space; they should make up 20 percent. A sky train and
mass transit systems including an underground train

Figure 15-11
Bangkok is on every T Top 10 W orst T Traffic Jams list.
Even with new freeways and public transportation,
more cars than ever pour into the city every day .
Increasing numbers of people can afford cars, which
adds to the mayhem. ©Thomas Ma/EPN/NewsCom.