Apparently, street food on the world-famous Khaosan and Yaowarat Roads, is not going to disappear completely, the Thai government has just announced. These two tourist mainstays will be exempt from the ban on street food vendors on the city’s sidewalks in an effort to achieve “cleanliness” in Bangkok.
Responding the widespread report that Khaosan and Yaowarat Roads are the next targets for the sidewalk clean-up, Vallop Suwandee, chief advisor to Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), said that street vendors will still be allowed to sell food in the areas, but they must meet the government’s hygiene standards.
Wallop said the BMA will host training for street vendors and teach them on how to cook in a hygienic way, how to dispose of waste, and how to dress properly. Vendors who pass the training will receive a proper license to sell food on the sidewalks of these two streets only.
He added that zoning and opening hours will be imposed. This might mean pad thai stalls that used to sell food all night will have to close up early and the stalls could possibly be restricted to certain parts of the street. Due to limited space, the government also plans to evict migrant workers who are not permitted to operate a food stall.
The BMA will release a more concrete plan soon as the street food ban is expected to be complete by the end of this year, Komchadluek reported.
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