New Chiang Mai Public Bus Route

Here's a recap on a previous post about Chiang Mai's public bus route. Perhaps it's just me, but I swear there are more buses on the road these days. Not just the odd eco friendly species or two, nor the old rattletraps, but brand spanking new blue versions.

Below is a map of the three routes (click on the photos for a better view).

The moat is indicated by the light blue square (I know...I'm brilliant!). The two major roads to the west of the moat: the southern road is Suthep Rd, the northern road is Huay Khaew Rd.

Fares range from 15 to 30 Baht and depending on the time of day and route, buses run every 15, 20 or 30 minutes.

If you've used the public bus service in Chiang Mai, or would like more details, please leave a comment.



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Getting around Chiang Mai by bus

Not having your own transport in Chiang Mai can be a little frustrating at times, and leave you at the mercy of the tuk tuk and songthaew drivers. Some time back I came across a web article about a public bus system, with a fleet of 26, which was launched in 2006. It sounded very promising. Sadly a different article reported that it was short lived and hence, the air conditioned Eco-friendly buses are now rarely seen....I've only ever seen one and that was two days ago. I'm not sure why the plan failed, perhaps it was, as one friend put it, due to Chiang Mai's 'songthaew mafia'.

Eco-friendly Chiang Mai bus

You can however, spot small blue buses making their rounds from time to time. Without air conditioning, (which isn't a cruncher) but, looking  like they should be put out to pasture, I've never considered them as an option. Even though the fare is only 10 Baht or so, I've not been able to decipher their route or timetable. So unattractive are they, that I don't even have a photo of one.

Recently signs have been appearing around Chiang Mai advertising new bus routes and hopefully, the old newer style buses! The new system, according to the signs, is to start 22nd May (today!) onward and the map indicates that there are three different routes.

If you're interested, here's the link via Google Translator. ChiangMaiBus.org  Unfortunately Google makes a bit of a mish mash out of the 'Activity' page, so if you can shed some light, please do.

In the mean time, I'll go do some translating of my own, as well as get more details from the local information boards.

Cheers! สเมป See what else we're up to at Cooee!