What had been one of Bangkok’s smoothest stretches of sidewalk – a true delight to weary feet – has been remade to meet the exacting standards of City Hall.
Since last week, tireless workers have labored to elevate the sidewalk, an obsidian stretch unblemished by crack or obstacle, to the uncompromising expectations of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration.
Bangkok mourns Sukhumvit’s only walkable sidewalk
Just days after horrified Sukhumvit strollers noticed the perfectly good sidewalk between sois 2 and 4 demolished at taxpayer expense, all fears that the city wouldn’t make good on its word were put to rest today.
To no one’s surprise, the first-rate pavement had been replaced by a wobbly grid of tiles.
It was met with equally rave reviews.
“Show this picture to a 5-year-old and they’ll be able to tell you which one’s better,” wrote Apiwat Charoenkong on the Thailand Footpath page.
“I understand that the government wants to standardize the footpaths but their standards just happen to be low,” user Avirute Srisomboon said.
The city did add a strip of braille blocks to keep the unsighted on track, but observers noted that blind pedestrians would be led right into a utility box. Ouch!
Awwww, progress!
