The main arterial road to the northeast, known as the Friendship Road, is heavily congested yesterday as hundreds of thousands of holidaymakers head for home or to other holiday destinations in private and public transport, ahead of the official New Year break.

The Bang Sue train terminal is also crowded with travellers. The State Railway of Thailand said that it has arranged additional trains and is capable of accommodating up to 100,000 passengers a day.

The state-run Transport Company has made 4,000 bus trips available yesterday and today, to cope with the increased passenger loads, and it expects about 70,000 passengers per day to use its services today.

On Wednesday, 55,402 people left Bangkok on Transport Company buses and 46,311 passengers arrived in the capital on 6,916 bus departures and arrivals.

For safety, all passengers have been advised to wear their seat belts throughout their journeys. On long-haul trips, two bus drivers are alternating and they must have doctor’s certificates to guarantee that they are fit to drive.

As usual, traffic on the Phahonyothin Road, bound for northern provinces before entering Nakhon Sawan, is also heavily congested today, but the traffic is moving, albeit slowly.

The northbound Asian highway is also congested in the Bang Pa-in district of Ayutthaya.