Patong traffic delays reach nearly two hours as road upgrades stall
Traffic congestion in Patong is worsening, with delays approaching two hours and no long-term road improvements yet implemented.
Traffic delays in Patong are reaching nearly two hours as vehicle numbers continue to outgrow the resort town’s ageing road network, according to Patong Traffic Division chief Pol Lt Col Chamnan Thrapshin.
Congestion now begins at about 7am, when parents take children to schools including Wat Suwan Khiri Wong School, also known as Wat Patong School, while hotel employees travel into town. Traffic briefly eases before heavy vehicles, which are restricted during the early morning, begin entering after 10am.
A second bottleneck typically forms between 5pm and 6pm as taxis, passenger vans and other vehicles return towards Kathu after dropping tourists at hotels. Pol Lt Col Chamnan said the main cause was traffic volumes exceeding road capacity, rather than roadworks on Thaweewong Road or Phra Metta Road.
Crashes or heavy rain on Patong Hill, the town’s main gateway, can rapidly extend queues for kilometres and push journey times close to two hours. Police continue to deploy officers at schools and major intersections, manually adjusting traffic flows according to the direction of congestion.
“Our duties are to facilitate traffic and enforce the law. We cannot change the road structure because we are not the owner of the road,” Pol Lt Col Chamnan said.
Long-term measures such as widening roads, redesigning intersections and increasing capacity fall under agencies responsible for Phuket’s highway network. Police have proposed widening Phra Baramee Road and adding turning lanes at Soi Kuan Yang, modelled on the layout of Wichit Songkram Road in Kathu, but the proposals have not progressed.
Until permanent work is carried out, officers are relying on temporary measures, including wheel chocks and towing equipment on Patong Hill to remove broken-down vehicles, as well as emergency supplies of lime for oil spills from heavy vehicles.
The latest assessment, published on 8 August 2026, comes eight months after Patong traffic police warned that they had no long-term solution to the town’s chronic congestion. Severe tailbacks are now occurring before the annual high-season influx of visitors.
