13 January 2022 – Thailand Country Level Event

Part I. Framing & Knowledge Sharing
Mr Peter Oborn from the UKBEAG welcomed participants and outlined the background to the UKBEAG’s contribution to the programme. Ms Boonyarat Kittiworawut, Country Director for Economics and Sustainable Development at the British Embassy Bangkok offered introductory remarks and was followed by Mr. Krian Gyos Sudlapha, Deputy Governor of Bangkok.

Mr Arsa Sukkhang, Director of the Drainage Information System Division at the Drainage & Sewerage Department at Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) provided an overview of their project to develop a Flood Management Decision Support System. Ms Thipawan Saenchan, City Planner at the Urban Planning Office in the City Planning and Urban Development Department provided an overview of their project for a Transit Oriented Development plan for the Khlong Bang Luang area of the city. Mr Prasopsook Pimpagovit, Deputy Director General, at the Strategy and Evaluation Department at the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration provided an overview of their project for an Integrated Data Hub.

Part II. Workshop 1. Delivering Transit Oriented Development
Mr Shahrukh Wani, Urban Economist at the International Growth Centre delivered a short presentation on the importance of Transit Oriented Development in the context of wider economic development. Mr Peter Runacres, Development Director at Argent delivered a presentation on the development of the Kings Cross urban regeneration project, at one time one of Europe’s largest regeneration projects and an example of transit oriented development. Mr Shahrukh Wani, then offered some reflections on where there could be learnings for Bangkok from the Kings Cross project.

Part III. Workshop 2. Achieving Integrated & Inclusive Urban Planning
Mr Shahrukh Wani, Urban Economist, International Growth Centre offered opening remarks about the important of integrated planning and outlined key benefits. Mr Jörn Peters, Principal Urban Planner and Ms Ei-Lyn Chia, Principal Urban Designer at the Greater London Authority delivered a presentation on delivering the London Plan focusing on the importance of linking land use planning with strategic planning using case studies to illustrate their points.

FCDO Global Future Cities Programme Advisor, Mr Natee Thong-Chan offered concluding remarks.

Key Takeaways:

1. Good land-use planning is based on five core principles:

• facilitating residential and commercial density, without which the city sprawls, leading to negative economic and environmental impact
• keeping adequate space for transport links and other public spaces
• considering the positive and negative spillover effects of individual and commercial actions while promoting the positive and mitigating the negative aspects
• connecting land use planning with strategic planning to provide long-term certainty to investors
• being proactive and taking a long-term approach.

2. A proactive public communications strategy is required as part of public investment and planning.
3. The example from the London’s King’s Cross regeneration project shows the necessity of engaging proactively with the local community throughout the project life cycle, especially for highly visible urban regeneration projects. This can be done through an integrated planning process like the London Plan that includes a months-long consultation process inviting feedback from the citizens of the city. This is essential in building a ‘common purpose’ behind strategic plans and projects and promotes inclusive developments.
4. Urban plans must balance providing long-time horizons with sufficient flexibility. The King’s Cross development showcased this need: the project required a multi-decade funding horizon while allowing the developers to amend the project based on changing needs through building flexibility into the design process.
5. Cross-country lessons provide valuable takeaways for Thailand to leverage and contribute to; for example, the development of the London Plan, which establishes a planning hierarchy in the city and city-wide objectives, shows what a roadmap to a comprehensive urban plan could look like.
6. Closer to Thailand, the example of transit-oriented developments in Hong Kong shows how a city can build a compact urban environment that allows people to connect without using cars.
7. Land-based financing is an under-tapped source of revenue for Bangkok and can be particularly useful when seeking investment in transit-oriented development. This is because any investment in improving transport connectivity, or changing the use of land, tends to increase the value of nearby land, which can be partially captured to pay for public investments. The example of Hong Kong’s Rail + Property model shows how this can be made possible. The participants further stressed the importance of getting the timing and community buy-in right when considering land-based financing instruments, such as land readjustment schemes.
8. The benefits of transit-oriented development can be widespread and the pilot project near the Khlong Bang area provides a valuable template to replicate city-wide. Potential benefits can include a positive impact on economic productivity levels due to a concentration of economic activity facilitated by accessible transport.