1The growth of the tertiary sector, which consists of construction and services provided by enterprises or by the state, is part of the expansion of non-agricultural activities and income that has defined Thailand for forty years.

2The period between 1980-1996 is characterized by the stability of the tertiary sector share in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (about 55 %) and, within it, by the growing importance of the financial sector (associated for statistical purposes at provincial level with insurance and real estate) and construction (plate 50 Product of tertiary sector). The doubling of the contribution from the financial sector was the result of efforts at the very beginning of the 1990s to encourage domestic savings and then to attract foreign capital through a few Sino-Thai financial conglomerates, via a network of commercial banks developed from the 1950s and subsidiaries consolidated in the 1970s (finance and securities companies). It also illustrates the spreading throughout the country of other financial institutions in both the public (agricultural cooperatives or savings cooperatives, Government savings banks) and private sectors (pawnshops). This upward trend continued until 1996, under the effect of an accelerated liberaliza-tion of the financial system; the aim behind this was to maintain economic growth, by supporting industriali-zation and developing infrastructures, and the political ambition was to make Thailand a subregional financial hub, especially for the reconstruction of the countries of Indo-China. The subsequent inflow of short-term capital from abroad (especially via the Bangkok Inter-national Banking Facility, established in 1993 with provincial ramifications) generated a high level of financial, stock market, and real estate speculation, and low-return investment projects: between 1993 and 1996, 30 % of loans were channeled into the real estate sector and construction, 25 % into consumption, compared with 14 % into the manufacturing sector and 2 % into infrastructure.

3When the speculation bubble burst in 1997, coinciding with a commercial deficit and the over-evaluation of the currency, the result was a financial crisis that revealed the scale of the foreign debt (more than 70 % of the GDP, of which 40 % was in the form of short-term debts and more than a third from the private sector) and the large amount of bad loans. Between 1996 and 2000, the value added dropped 65 % for financial activities, 35 % for insurance and real estate, and 55 % for the construction sector which had been boosted since 1987 by the frenzy of major urban property projects (offices and luxury apartm-ents). The crisis laid bare a series of institutional failures due to the absence of any rules or regulations to safeguard the opening of the financial system or any supervision of operators’ activities. Their numbers had grown as a result of the euphoria of the first half of the 1990s and there were many more financial institutions independent of banks. They were protected by the state, they were favored by the political and bureaucratic apparatus, and what were at first appreciated as elements of economic success, have since been denigrated in the name of corruption, inefficiency and lack of transparency. The image of the central bank, the Bank of Thailand, suffered from accusations of imprudence in its management of liberalization and of poor assessment of monetary risks. The country called on the International Monetary Fund for assistance, and in the meantime measures were taken to help establishments restructure their debts and financial institutions recapitalize (creation notably of the Asset Management Corporation): non-performing loans were reduced from about 50 % to 10 % by the beginning of 2002, total foreign debt decreased to 50 % of the GDP.

4Apart from the importance of its contribution to the GDP, the tertiary sector provides 70 % of non-agricultural employment and 35 % of employment overall. The four sub-sectors, selected for their significance in relation to employment as well as to the GDP, and defined by the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, do not lend themselves to any internal subdivisions and they do not all correspond to the categories used to constitute the GDP (plate 51 Employment in four tertiary sub-sectors). In order to give a better understanding of the phenomenon of urbanization, the maps combine the masses of employment with employment structure according to size of establishment, as defined by classes of employees. Since Bangkok accounts for such a large proportion of employment (60 % on average), as a result of its exaggerated metropolitan functions, to represent such proportions accurately would make it difficult to produce a legible map covering the other provinces. For this reason Bangkok is not shown here.

5In the period immediately after the crisis, the tertiary sector suffered a reduction in employment which it is difficult to evaluate due to the structural characteristics of the sector: importance of informal activities in some sub-sectors (trade, hotels and restaurants, transport), scattering in a multitude of small enterprises, insertion in multi-activity. Some services (trade, street food vending) have absorbed workers laid off from industry or other tertiary sector activities that were particularly affected by the crisis (real estate, construction) and were put under restructuration (finance). Measures taken to recapitalize and settle debts have led to the closure of about sixty finance companies and changes have occurred in the control of banks and acquisition of holdings: the banking sector, despite greater participation by foreign banks, still remains a closed oligopolistic market. In the construction sector, although employment was severely affected by the collapse of the real estate sector and postponements of major infrastructure projects, there are now signs of recovery thanks to the upturn in the middle class residential market and completion work on unfinished buildings. Major retail distribution has asserted its position by the opening of supermarkets, large stores and shopping malls which are threatening the survival of small shops in urban centers: these have recently benefited from government aid to organize their supplying systems. The cash flow problems of national groups have led to increased stake-sharing with groups from abroad.

6Due to its importance in the GDP (6 %) and in employment, leisure and business tourism is fortunate in being the focus of attention by the state, which aims to make Thailand the heart of the Asian tourist industry. In 2002, it appointed a new ministry responsible for coordinating private and public operators, and for creating policies to take into account the increased regional competition (Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia) and the risks involved in the world tourist market. The Tourism Authority of Thailand continues to focus on promotional campaigns for customers abroad but which are also aimed at Thai nationals: leisure tourism within Thailand is booming, with Thais travelling not only to the same destinations as the international tourists, but also to other preferred destinations (plate 52 Hotel trade). Tour operators and public authorities are keen to develop the country’s tourist image and to attract an international clientele with a wide variety of aspirations and tastes, so they are diversifying available attractions and opening up new destinations to help spread tourism throughout the entire country (plate 53 Main tourist destinations). In order to do this and to increase the value added from tourist activities by reaching out to a rich clientele, operators have no qualms about building luxury accommodation on sites that until now had the protected status of national parks (Ko Chang close to Cambodia, see plate 8 Environment and natural resources).

7The demand from tourism has helped to open up domestic air routes, and to extend international air routes for Bangkok and a few provincial airports. The capital is the major hub for air travel in Asia, and the crossroads for domestic passenger journeys whatever the mode of transport (plate 54 Passenger traffic). However, the very wide variety of modes of transport can in no way disguise either the radial configuration of the air, road and rail networks, or the predominance of the use of road transport for passenger journeys and the carriage of goods (plate 55 Commodities traffic). Rail use is limited, however, by the structure of the rail network; coastal shipping has brought activity to the ports on the Gulf of Thailand and the canals serve mainly a few provinces in the Central Plain: for all these modes of transport, Bangkok remains the focal point for the movement of goods and passengers. Inter-regional exchanges of goods (according to a regional division used by several public bodies) confirm that production like demand, both from industry and from consumers, has undergone a spatial diffusion right out to the peripheral regions, through some poles (plate 56 Inter-regional trade). The nature of these movements shows that they are not limited to traditional regional agricultural specializations.

8The development of the very heterogeneous tertiary sector has led to very contrasting spatial configurations of activities and their value (plate 57 Tertiary sector facilities and activities). Alongside the aim of integrating some of the long marginalized peripheral regions and facilitating economic growth, the state has also had to cope with rapid urbanization: here too the appeals to the private sector have resulted in marked spatial differentiations in the provision of facilities. Some variables, processed analytically in chapter 3 The state and the construction of the territory, are incorporated into the principal component analysis.

The Range of services to the population

Street vendors on a Bangkok sidewalk

From small villages to large cities, small traders can be found, either ambulant or with a stall, selling a wide variety of products and providing a source of income for many people. Generally considered informal, these activities have absorbed many laid off workers, victims of the 1997 crisis. In the larger cities, some urban authorities are trying to limit their physical extension and frequency.

Bus station in Nakhon Ratchasima

Road transport predominates in the carriage of passengers and goods, thanks to the extensive road network. Public buses or buses run by private enterprises are widely used for inter-provincial journeys by those who cannot afford their own vehicle. The number of road accident victims is constantly on the increase.

The heterogeneity of the tertiary sector as a contributory factor to urban differentiation

9The contribution of the tertiary sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) remained stable over the period 1980-1996, at around 56 %, due to an annual growth of 8 %. The finance-insurance-real estate, transportation-communication, and con-struction sub-sectors recorded strong growth from 1989 (between 11 % and 16 % per year) and increased their contribution to the value added of the tertiary sector. Within the group made up of trade and transportation-communication, which was stable over this period, the pre-eminence of trade was eroded (from over 70 % of the product of the sub-sector in 1980 to 65 % in 1996) while transportation-communication consolidated its position. The contribution of “services” weakened between 1990 and 1998: almost half of the value added of this sub-sector derives from hotels-restaurants, 25 % from education, 10 % from health services. The sub-sector labeled “others” followed the same trend, but with a specific internal modification: from 1995, the value added of energy and water supply reached the same level as that of public administration and ownership of dwellings. From 1,700 billion Baht in 1996, the value of the tertiary sector fell to 1,500 billion in 2000 as a result of the severe recession (- 20 % per year after 1996) in the construction and the finance-insurance-real estate activities at the heart of the 1997 crisis.

10Bangkok, where almost 70 % of the Gross Provincial Product (GPP) derives from the tertiary sector, monopolizes almost 50 % of the national product of this sector. In the surrounding provinces (except Nonthaburi) and as far as Ayutthaya-Saraburi to the north and the Eastern Seaboard, the tertiary sector contributes less than 40 % to the provincial value added for products that represent at most 5 % of that in Bangkok (Samut Prakan and Chon Buri): here industry is the primary source of value added, just as in Lamphun in the North. Everywhere else, the tertiary sector is the predominant contributor to the provincial product, with the exception of the western provinces of the peninsula and Pattani. Higher values produced and lower contributions distinguish certain regional poles (Nakhon Ratchasima, Khon Kaen, Songkhla) whereas in the North, where the tertiary product is just as high, Chiang Mai registers a high rate of participation in the GPP by the tertiary sector, as a result of tourism-associated activities.

11The spatial distribution of the product of the tertiary sector results from a combination of the value added of activities which are extremely heterogeneous within the sector and which provincial data does not always allow us to differentiate (especially “services”). The principal component analysis enables us to define 8 classes of spatial structures of the product. The first three classes are characterized by a concentration of activities sensitive to the demographic and economic size of the urban market and to the internationalization of exchanges, and by a relative weight of commercial activities and public administration which is lower than average. They are limited to the central provinces and part of the Eastern Seaboard (except Chon Buri). At the heart of this area, Bangkok and some of the neighboring or more distant provinces, are differentiated by the relative importance in class 1 of transportation-communication, finance-insurance-real estate, energy and water supply. The contribution of this last sub-sector increases in the surrounding area and this is accompanied by a relative weakening of the first two in class 2. This trend continues in Pathum Thani and Nonthaburi (class 3) which register a large contribution of construction.

12Class 4 relates specifically to the provinces with a pole where urban functions are carried out on a regional scale: the contribution to the provincial product of transportation-communication enterprises, financial and real estate institutions and especially “services” is of major importance. As well as the educational and health services that are considerable everywhere, there is the probable importance of tourism-associated activities in Chiang Mai and Phuket, services to enterprises in Chon Buri. “Services” play an even more decisive role in the three provinces that make up class 5. Classes 6 and 7 are similar as they both include commercial activities. However, the provinces in class 6, bordering the Bangkok metropolitan region and in the peninsula, show a contribution of public administration which is less than in the very rural provinces of class 7. The relative weight of this sub-sector is as great in class 8, but is less than that of construction: in these provinces in the North and the North-East, activities linked with transportation-communication, and finance-insurance-real estate are clearly less significant.

Plate 50 – Product of tertiary sector

Urban functions shown by size of establishments in the tertiary sector

13The classes of establishments have been defined according to the profile of each sub-sector. Trade-restaurants-hotels (hereafter referred to as “trade”) and construction are characterized by the presence of large establishments from class 2 onwards, whereas for transport-storage-communication (“transport”) and finance-insurance-real estate-services to enterprises ( “finance”) there is a very clear contrast between the first three classes and the last two. Bangkok has not been shown for reasons of legibility. In employment terms the capital represents 50 % for “trade”, 40 % for construction, 75 % for “finance” and 65 % for “transport”.

14The distribution of employment throughout the country reveals different configurations. “Trade” and “transport” represent two extremes, with the former having a less marked inter-provincial imbalance due to its internal heterogeneity and to vigorous commer-cial activity across the entire country. In classes 4 and 5 in the “trade” sub-sector we see provinces with urban centers on a regional scale (see plate 16 Munici-palities), cumulating commercial wholesale and retail functions, while some also have a large part of their activity associated with tourism (Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phitsanulok, Chon Buri, Phuket; see also plate 52 Hotel trade). Around Bangkok (class 4) and in the largest towns in the peripheral regions, the evolution that has occurred in retail distribution, from the popularity of supermarkets and shopping malls, has brought the structure of employment towards medium-sized and large establishments. Some provinces, where the urban centers are somewhat dependent on primary produce markets, can be differentiated from their neighbors as they include enterprises of over 299 employees (Nakhon Sawan, Buri Ram, Surin, Ranong, Trang). Everywhere else, small enter-prises predominate (class 1) with amounts of employ-ment that can exceed those of the larger urban centers (Kanchanaburi, Roi Et, Sakon Nakhon). Petty retail trade, which can be carried out all year round at the place of residence, traditionally plays an important role in the multi-activity of the rural population.

15The masses and structure of employment in the construction sub-sector bring to the fore (class 5) the Eastern Seaboard, some central provinces and Phuket where large enterprises can be found in major infrastructure or tourism projects. It is in this sub-sector that the capital has the smallest share (class 5). Classes 3 and 4, which are opposite for the share of small and medium-sized enterprises, highlight the coastal axis along the eastern side of the peninsula, the North-East corridor, Chiang Mai and Lampang, some provinces to the north and west of Bangkok where residential housing for the middle classes represents a large market. The improvements in housing, right down to village level, made possible as a result of increased incomes, generate employment in small enterprises which, during the agricultural off season, represents an income supplement.

16The “finance” sub-sector reveals a concentration which appears relative for employment (30 % without Bangkok) but which is high for the largest enterprises in four provinces of the metropolitan region and Chon Buri. In the different segments of the sub-sector, the role of the capital (where half of employ-ment is in establishments of more than 299 employ-ees) has not been compromised by the scattering of banks throughout the entire country or by the development of services to enterprises in some of the adjoining provinces, the Eastern Seaboard or the peripheral regions. With the exception of Phuket (importance of tourism), these are characterized either by a larger proportion of small enterprises (Chiang Mai, Phitsanulok, Ayutthaya, Rayong, Songkhla in class 4) or by small enterprises exclusively (Nakhon Ratchasima, Nakhon Sawan and the western provinces of the capital in class 3).

17The major imbalance between provinces in the “transport” sub-sector can be explained by the fact that employment is concentrated in two provinces and by the proportion of the largest establishments (40 % without Bangkok in Nonthaburi and Samut Prakan and up to 95 % in enterprises of over 299 employees). The capital’s share confirms its supremacy in domestic and international communications. Certain poles can be clearly seen, also belonging to class 5, but ranking far behind for the amount of employment in the peripheral regions (Khon Kaen, Chiang Mai, Nakon Sawan, Songkhla), and the Bangkok metropolitan region (Pathum Thani, Saraburi), while others in the same regions show a decrease in large enterprises in favor of small ones (Nakhon Ratchasima, Nakhon Pathom, Ayutthaya, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Chumphon in class 4). Everywhere else, small establishments predominate.

Plate 51 – Employment in four tertiary sub-sectors

The growth of domestic and foreign tourism

18Since the 1970s, tourism, whether for business, conferences or pleasure, has played a major role in Thailand’s economic growth (see also plate 2 Foreign and Thai travelers), with international tourism providing the country’s main supply of foreign currency, and generating a great deal of employment, either directly or indirectly (in the service sector, but also in handicrafts). The tourism industry has been massively supported by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), and also by the Board of Investment (BOI), which provides both national and foreign investment incentives in the tourism sector, especially in the hotel industry, and today this sector represents 6 % of the country’s Gross Domestic Product.

19Thailand has become a major destination for mass international tourism, thus also stimulating domestic tourism, as the country’s economy and infra-structure provision improve. The Thais have tradition-ally been very mobile, for economic and family rea-sons, but also to attend the many Buddhist, Chinese or Animist festivals (songkran, loi kratong) or to visit religious shrines (see also plate 11 Religions). To these have now been added new types of mobility, tourism for pleasure, either in trips abroad or cultural visits and resort holidays in Thailand itself, following the trends of international tourism. Such trips are now much more accessible to the Thais as their standard of living is higher than before and communication has improved considerably. The increased turnover from the hotel industry in some provinces in the North-East (Nakhon Ratchasima, Khon Kaen, Nong Khai, Ubon Ratchathani), where domestic tourism predominates, is a clear sign of this trend.

20International tourism is still the driving force behind this sector. As well as the foreign currency he brings in, the foreign tourist also usually spends more than the Thai tourist. Moreover, since the end of the 1970s, the increase in tourism revenue has exceeded the increase in numbers of visitors entering the country, due to the wider selection of tourist destina-tions now offered and the increase in business travel and conference facilities, which generate considerably more income.

21Through its widening appeal and diversification, international tourism encourages the development of new sites and promotes investment in the hotel sector and the development of communication infrastructure and services. Today, tourism involves almost the entire country, even the North-East, which until now had been somewhat left behind; coverage varies in the degree and type of facility provided, of course, but the tendency is generally to play down the country’s authentic and exotic features, as presented in the tourist brochures of the 1970s and 1980s, in favor of more elaborate and sophisticated facilities and activities (historic and archeological sites, natural parks). The result is that Thailand has now become the gateway to newly emerging and more “authentic” neighboring tourist regions, such as Yunnan, the Shan plateau in Myanmar, Laos, now much more accessible since the construction of the Friendship Bridge in 1994, and Cambodia. Direct air routes link the Asian capitals and tourist centers to Bangkok and also to several Thai provincial centers.

22In 1996, foreigners represented 45 % of hotel room occupancy. Numbers are considerably greater in certain target destinations, promoted by the professionals of the tourism industry, where the income from hotels is also highest. Bangkok first of all, principal point of access for international tourists, practically all of whom arrive by air, with the exception of the Malaysians; next the coastal resorts in the east and the south (Chon Buri, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Phuket, Narathiwat); then the cultural and eco-tourism destina-tions in the north. With the exception of the northern part of the Central Plain and the North-East corridor linking Nakhon Ratchasima and Nong Khai, a dom-estic tourist destination, the high proportion of foreign-ers correlates positively with visitor numbers. In the longest established tourist destinations for foreigners, major international hotels, developed by Thai chains (Amtel, Dusit Thani, Imperial, Central) or foreign chains (Novotel, Sheraton, Ramada), have gradually supplanted the smaller establishments owned by local entrepreneurs. Those destinations that have more recently been opened up to international tourism, however, such as the island of Ko Samui in Surat Thani, or Chiang Rai and Mae Hong Son to the north, have not yet completed this process of development and small hotels still predominate here. Once again, the North-East corridor is in this respect atypical, as it does have some major hotels, though these are still few in number, and cater mainly for Thai visitors.

Plate 52 – Hotel Trade

Tourism extends through the entire country

23For a long time, tourism was confined to a line running from north to south, focusing on Bangkok, and based on a limited number of destinations, Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket; today it covers the entire country, from the main points of access provided by international air lines.

24Bangkok, at the center, remains the main entry point for the international tourist and is also an important destination for domestic tourism (see plate 54 Passenger traffic). It is also the regional hub for air travel to continental South-East Asia, giving access to neighboring countries. Major efforts have been made to improve the tourist image of the city (about 30 % of its budget) and extend the average stay of visitors to the capital, which is currently less than 2 days. Close to Bangkok are the coastal resorts of the Eastern Seaboard, limited for a long time just to Pattaya, but now they are more numerous. Pattaya is situated close to the former air base at U-Tapao and quickly developed in the 1960s into a “Rest and Recreation” station for American soldiers, from where the image of Thailand as a center for sex tourism. This development happened far too quickly, with no thought given to environmental planning and this, combined with the town’s somewhat dubious reputation (gambling, prostitution, crime), did not help its image. It has been on the decline since the end of the 1980s as a result of competition from other sunshine destinations along this coast or on the neighboring islands from Chon Buri to the Cambodian border. There are also holiday resorts along the other coast of the Gulf of Thailand, such as Hua Hin, an old resort, fashionable with the elite in the 1960s, or Cha-am, a more recent development, but these destina-tions are more popular with the Thais.

25Another area where tourist resorts have become established is the island of Phuket, on the peninsula, which has enjoyed a remarkable tourist boom since the 1970s with a gradual “colonization” of the island by the major hotel chains, offering a range of services and activities which are more and more varied and sophisticated. Tourism has spread from Phuket towards neighboring destinations, which in the past were more protected, like the islands off Krabi (Ko Phi Phi) and as far as those off the coast at Satun (Ko Tarutao), which mark the southern limit of the expansion of leisure tourism in Thailand. On the east coast of the peninsula, a similar process has occurred, although to a lesser degree, marked by the spread of tourism from Ko Samui into the adjoining islands where expansion has been limited due to the protected marine reserves located there. This surge in tourism into the south of the country has met up with the influx of tourists from Malaysia, stopping at the frontier towns of Sungai Kolok or Betong further to the west, with the town of Hat Yai and its gaming houses being particularly popular.

26In the north, Chiang Mai is a destination based on culture and handicrafts, the starting place for trekking holidays into the mountains and to the minority populations who live there (see plate 10 Main ethno-linguistic groups). The city provides eco-tourism, sharing the influx of foreign tourists, and of Thais too, with other similar northern destinations, such as Chiang Rai, Mae Hong Son and to a lesser extent Tak. Linking these focal points on the north-south axis, are new destinations, some more cultural and historic or promoting “countryside” tourism, to complete the tourist landscape and also bring in many Thai visitors. Sukhothai and Ayutthaya, ancient capitals, are a good example of this. West of Bangkok, Kanchanaburi is the starting point for excursions to the bridge on the river Kwai and beyond this, the Three Pagodas Pass into Myanmar. Finally, the North-East, with its many Khmer temples, has also benefited from attempts on the part of the Tourist Authority of Thailand (TAT) to disperse tourism throughout the country, with the promotion of festivals and countryside tourism in the national parks (see plate 8 Environment and natural resources). The axis linking the main towns of the North-East appears to be developing apace, catering mainly for domestic leisure tourism and conferences (the World Tech fair in 1995 brought a 3-fold increase in visitors to Nakhon Ratchasima): hotel capacity has almost reached a state of saturation.

27The list of major tourist destinations will surely expand in the future, as long as new initiatives emerge and promotion by the TAT of Thailand as a tourist destination becomes more focused. Tourism already extends to the country’s borders in all directions, so cooperation with neighboring countries is already established, whether through institutions or in the form of Thai investments in the hotel and tourism sectors.

Plate 53 – Main tourist destinations

Rail and air services radiate from the center

28The road has overtaken all other modes of passenger transport: rail accounts for about 5 % and air about 2 % of the total, all distances combined. Facilitated by the social prestige afforded those who own a vehicle and boosted by the improvements in the standard of living of part of the population, as well as meeting a real need, private vehicle ownership rose by 16 % per year between 1991 and 1997, to reach almost 5 million cars and 12 million motorcycles. Statistics relating to inter-provincial journeys by private car are not available. Although the majority of people still use public transport, its importance is steadily declining despite the modernization of privately owned buses which have increased in number almost three times faster than those in the sector as a whole. Commuters from the Bangkok suburbs, or neighboring provinces where there are navigable waterways, use the public boat service, which plays an important role. Nevertheless, the traffic jams at certain points in the capital, which accounts for more than 40 % of the cars in the entire country, are extreme at certain times of day.

29The framework of the railway network is very basic: the North-East branch is the only one to divide at Nakhon Ratchasima, with greater passenger numbers on the service to Ubon Ratchathani. Other lines branch out either from Bangkok (Prachin Buri with 900,000 passengers and slightly fewer for Suphan Buri) or from branch lines in the peripheral regions where only lines in the South, which are very short, have over 100,000 passengers. Further from Bangkok, the three major branch lines gradually thin out due to the decrease in inter-province relations, the exception being the line to the South: passenger numbers are increasing from Phatthalung to the frontier with Malaysia, in particular because this part of the line is used by tourists. Traffic within the provinces, which is added to journeys between the province centers, is proportionally greater in the South and on the line which runs through the southern part of the North-East region. The use of the train for local journeys is also reflected in the less regular decrease in total traffic. With 45 % of passengers, the traffic core is concentrated between Ayutthaya and Bangkok due to its central position in the rail network but also because of the 12 million commuters per year who travel to and from Bangkok.

30About 400 km around Bangkok, beyond Nakhon Sawan, Nakhon Ratchasima and Prachuap Khiri Khan, the train cannot compete with the road or the plane in providing services to the capital for the well-off social classes. In the South and the North, the plane is beginning to play a role in regional organization, around the main airports at Chiang Mai and Phuket, with impetus from the mainly international tourism. Apart from these as yet sketchy regional air sub-networks and the Phuket-Hat Yai or the PhuketChiang Mai tourist services, the map of domestic air traffic consists solely of the routes spreading out from Bangkok. Several inter-provincial services have disappeared since the middle of the 1970s in the North and the North-East as the road network has gradually been improved.

31Chiang Mai, Phuket and, to a lesser extent, Hat Yai are distinguished from the purely domestic airports by their higher levels of traffic. These three interna-tional provincial airports (Chiang Rai has been open to international traffic only since 2001 and U-Tapao operates only charter flights) have each a particular profile. International traffic is on a smaller scale than internal traffic, and more so in Chiang Mai than in Hat Yai. Difference is also due to the different proportion of flights to South-East Asia (60 % and 88 % respec-tively) and specific services. Whereas Chiang Mai airport provides services to Myanmar (14 %) and North-East Asia (34 %), Hat Yai looks mainly towards Singapore and Malaysia (87 %) with a few services to the Middle East and South Asia. The variety of countries served and the relative size of the traffic flow with Europe, South-East Asia, Japan-Korea and other countries in North-East Asia give Phuket airport a similar character to Bangkok, although international flights represent only one third of total traffic in Phuket compared with three quarters in the capital. Bangkok airport receives more than 90 % of all the country’s international passengers: since 1974 it has been one of the largest hubs for air travel in the world and one of the major nerve centers of Eastern Asia. Its near saturation, for passengers and freight alike, despite several expansion phases, will inevitably result in the opening of a second metropolitan airport under construction in Samut Prakan province: Nong Ngu Hao airport is planned to open in 2005.

Plate 54 – Passenger Traffic

The predominance of road transport in the movement of goods

32Because the country has an extensive road network, and because of the low cost and flexibility of road transport, this is the preferred mode for transporting just over 90 % of the 470 million tons of goods carried between the province centers with a fleet of heavy goods vehicles that grew by 10 % per year between 1991 and 1997. The canals, the traditional way of communication in the 18^th and 19^th centuries when almost all exports derived from the Central Plain, now contribute only 4 % of the total, coastal shipping 2 %, and rail also 2 %. The movement of petroleum products by pipeline for industry has increased since 1994 (1 %) while air freight remains very limited. Most coastal shipping involves Bangkok, where there is a major imbalance between the volumes going in (more than 17 million tons) and those going out (less than 1 million): the flow of goods from Chon Buri, crushing in scale, and from Rayong consists mainly of petroleum products. Inland waterway transportation, where the volumes of traffic are recorded only for the Central Plain, the main area concerned, carries heavy products (sand, gravel) over short distances: 90 % of tonnage are carried within the provinces and accounts for the low level of this mode of transport in inter-provincial movement.

33Produced from flow matrices between the province centers, the map showing goods traffic clearly highlights the scale of the flow of goods and the comparative position of the focus points, but nevertheless it does not give an exact picture of the use made of the network. Firstly, internal traffic in the provinces is not considered and secondly, as we do not know the actual itineraries taken by the road transport companies, the method of measurement consisted of adding the flow on the sections of road network which constitute the shortest route, though other criteria will enter into the equation when drivers actually decide on their route. So it is probable that, because of the improvements carried out on the section of highway between Lampang and Nakhon Sawan via Kamphaeng Phet and Tak, a proportion of traffic will be drawn away from the other two branches.

34The general shape of north-south traffic spreads out in a tentacle formation from the delta, though direct road traffic between Chon Buri and Nakhon Ratchasima disrupts this pattern to some extent. Volumes carried on cross-country routes, such as those between the North and the North-East, are reduced and the major imbalance between the two sides of the peninsula reflects their demographic and industrial dichotomy. The pressure on the road infrastructure within the Ratchaburi-Saraburi-Chon Buri triangle is extreme, given the density of traffic and the nature of the goods being transported. Unending streams of overloaded trucks transporting very heavy goods such as 30 million tons of sand and gravel into Bangkok, are sufficient in themselves to account for the massive imbalance between the flow of goods into and out of the Bangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR). The scale of road traffic between Bangkok and Ayutthaya is also due to the 12 million tons of rice imported by the BMR, between Bangkok and Chon Buri-Rayong, to the 9 million tons of imported petroleum products and an equivalent amount of exported waste material. The flow of trucks entering and leaving the BMR carries more than 20 % of total national traffic. The provinces of Ratchaburi, Ayutthaya, Saraburi, Chachoengsao and Chon Buri also have to cope with large amounts of traffic on the major roads linking them with the BMR: when combined with traffic movement within the BMR, this makes up 95 % of total national traffic. This expansion in the road traffic network is an indicator of how production activities have spread away from the BMR and, in the case of Chon Buri, the transport of large amounts of goods exported to the international market since 1992-1993 from the deep-water ports on the Eastern Seaboard, especially Laem Chabang.

35More than 150 km from Bangkok, the northern branch carries the heaviest annual road traffic load, due mainly to the transport of coal from the mines in the North to the cement works in Saraburi. The road in the South carries lorries laden with wood and in the North-East, cassava and rice. On average, one third of goods traffic by road is within the provinces and over fairly short distances. Road transport within the provinces, which is not recorded for the BMR, has to be added to inter-provincial traffic in order to assess road use. The movement of proportionally large volumes of goods in the total traffic contained within the province indicates the proximity of major plants for the processing of raw materials: sugar mills in Kanchanaburi, Chaiyaphum and Udon Thani, for example, rubber processing plants in Surat Thani and coal in Lampang.

Plate 55 – Commodities Traffic

An imbalance in inter-regional trade

36These maps show exchanges of four types of goods between seven major regions that derive from several provinces taken together. They are based on the flow of goods between province centers, all modes of transport combined, but do not show movement within these major regions: so, the propor-tion of inter-province flow that is not represented is 9 % for manufactured goods, 14 % for timber and wood products, petroleum products and solid fuels, 20 % for agricultural products. What can clearly be seen is the concentration of demand, both for industry and for consumption, in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR) along with regional specializations due to the location of raw materials. However, the limitations of this pattern are also clearly shown in the development of agriculture beyond the delta region, the emergence of poles of consumption and industrial processing plants in the peripheral regions. The East, the Upper Center and to a lesser extent the West, are differen-tiated by the dynamic created by their proximity to the BMR, with the East also specializing in industry and opening up to international links with the initiatives taking place within the scope of the Eastern Seaboard.

37Transport of wood, timber and by-products is important from the South, which now supplies most of the nation’s requirements, both in the so-called noble species and also in raw materials like rubber trees, bamboo, coconut palm or other fruit trees. Almost half of the goods dispatched from this region are destined for the BMR to be transformed in the large furniture or paper pulp factories, mainly in Samut Prakan and Pathum Thani, or they are re-exported, chiefly to the furniture and handicraft industries in other regions. The North, which was once a major producer, now also leans heavily on the South for its supplies. The use nowadays of a variety of species has also made it possible to exploit the production potential of other regions, such as the East.

38The largest movement of agro-food products is from the North and the North-East towards the BMR, and also towards the Upper Center and the East. These are mainly rice (white rice and glutinous rice), which makes up two thirds of the tonnage from these two regions, and cassava which undergoes an initial processing mainly in the North-East, and is then taken to supply the factories of Chon Buri in the East. To these products can be added large quantities of sugar for the North-East and maize for the North. Goods dispatched from the South to the BMR make up the majority of traffic to leave this region: they consist of rubber and live animals, whose feed is supplied by factories in the Center. The South is more autonomous than the other two peripheral regions regarding international exports of agro-food products, a proportion of which are shipped directly from the deep-water ports at Songkhla and Phuket: the scale of the region’s intra-regional traffic gives an indication of this. The volume of goods sent from the BMR into the other regions is low but it does involve higher value added products, processed food and drink or feed for livestock.

39The East and the North are the two major regions for energy provision. Petroleum products from the Gulf of Thailand are sent to the refineries at Rayong and Chon Buri where some of the oil and gas produced are used on site and the rest sent to the BMR that is an important center of consumption and processing (see plate 25 Energy infrastructure and networks): in 1996 the peripheral regions, the South excepted, received more of their petroleum products from Bangkok than from the Eastern Seaboard. The North sends lignite to the Upper Center where it is processed and used in Saraburi in particular.

40Even more than for the products already mentioned, exchanges of machinery, transport equipment and manufactured goods illustrate just how many places of production and consumption there are. It is in this very varied category of goods that relations between the regions are most strongly developed, even though the movement of goods between the peripheral regions has a long way to go before reaching the scale of exchanges with the other four regions or between these four regions. Exchanges between the BMR with the Upper Center, the West and the East are less unequal than one might suppose, despite the considerable amount of exchanges originating in the East. The BMR remains at the heart of this movement of goods since this region monopolizes two-fifths of all exchanges, while the West, taking advantage of the growth dynamics of the center, emerges as a pole of some importance.

Plate 56 – Inter-regional Trade

Facilities and activities in the tertiary sector: variations between areas

41In a context where budgets are inadequate, and where publicly funded amenities in the peripheral areas are unable to redress the balance in reducing regional inequalities, new opportunities are opening up for the private sector to develop tertiary activities, especially facilities and services.

42In the legend tables, only the most discriminating variables of the principal component analyses are shown. For facilities, the classification takes evolutions into account, evidence of the public authorities’ ability to respond to increased demand; transport infrastructure is incorporated in the form of an index. For activities, the employment structure index covers the smallest enterprises (energy and water are excluded because of their atypical behavior).

43The map of facilities highlights the Bangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR) where, even if the level is good overall, there are some public sector shortcomings as a result of urban growth. Bangkok itself stands out, with its high level of facilities (piped water, very good transport infrastructure, high telephone, medical and banking ratio) and well developed hotel amenities with large establishments; however, since the middle of the 1980s, the number of schools and post offices has not been sufficient, given the level of activity and population. In the five adjoining provinces (class 2, with similar charac-teristics, apart from the hotels), more facilities have been provided and the level of school provision is now higher than in Bangkok and the provision of tele-phones, health amenities (private sector especially) and banking is only slightly lower; there are still not enough post offices, however. Class 3 groups together provinces with a sizeable regional pole; they have a better postal service, an older established network of hospitals, a good level of hotel and transport infra-structure to match the level of tourist activities. A second ring of provinces around Bangkok, several provinces in the North and the North-East corridor (including the poles of Nakhon Ratchasima and Khon Kaen) form class 4, and these are close to the national average, or only very slightly below (telephones, hospitals).

44Some provinces in the North and the Center and most of the provinces in the South can be found in classes 5 and 6; the amount of public piped water decreases, with more private wells, and the rate of rural electrification is below average, the number of schools matches the average and postal equipment is good; the main differences lie in hotel facilities and the proportion of private hospitals. The province of Mae Hong Son is notable in class 7 as it has the lowest rate of electrification in the country and very contrasting facility provision. Classes 8 and 9 are limited to the North-East where water and electricity equipment have benefited from public programs but where investment in telephone provision, health amenities (reluctance of the private sector) and banks has not yet been sufficient to compensate for the initial poor development.

45The map of activities shows a central area that expands towards the north and the east to include two of the three provinces of the Eastern Seaboard: the internal organization is modified when incor-porating variables other than the provincial structure of the tertiary sector product (see plate 50 Product of tertiary sector). Bangkok stands out with its strong hotel industry, a high contribution to the Gross Provincial Product and the national tertiary sector product. The situation in relation to these variables is the opposite in class 2 which shows up provinces where, despite a high rate of growth, the tertiary sector product remains below the industrial product. In Pathum Thani and Nonthaburi (class 5), the even more vigorous growth of the tertiary sector is linked with construction and power and water supply. In these three classes, enterprises are medium to large in size. Phuket is the only province in class 3 (activities characteristic of tourism, often in large enterprises). Class 4 is represented by provinces that include a regional pole, where financial and real estate activities and “services” play an especially important role; small enterprises are more important here.

46Class 6 covers provinces, grouped together more in the North-East than in the North, where construction boosts the contribution of the tertiary sector to the provincial product. A group of provinces around the Bangkok metropolitan region is close to the national average and forms class 7. Their hotel industry activity and higher growth in the tertiary sector product differentiate them from the very rural provinces of class 8 which are also conspicuous by their limited activity in the financial and communication sectors. Small enterprises predominate.

Plate 57 – Tertiary sector facilities and activities