Big, smoggy Bangkok gets a badly needed breath of fresh air

Expansion of Benjakitti Park has created an oasis for city dwellers and attracted wildlife

BANGKOK For more than half a century, Thailand's state-owned tobacco monopoly mass-produced cigarettes at a sprawling industrial estate in Bangkok. A steady stream of heavy trucks brought raw tobacco into the heart of the city and hauled millions of cigarettes away.

But now, that cancer-inducing complex has given way to something completely different: a green space that has brought a breath of fresh air to Bangkok's congested, often smoggy centre.

The transformation has been a stunning success, creating an oasis of about 41ha for city dwellers. The

site an expansion of the existing Benjakitti Park - includes an over-1.5km elevated walkway, as well as water-purifying wetlands, 8,000 new trees, pickleball and basketball courts, and a dog-walking zone.

The Skywalk, as the walkway is known, has become especially popular with young people. At sunset, as the heat of the day eases, it is often packed with visitors, many posing for selfies.

"Benjakitti Park is at the top of my list for places to take pictures," said freelance photographer Pongsaton Tatone, who was on the Sky-

walk snapping shots of a group of university graduates cavorting in their gowns. "It is a very popular spot." The new section of the park was officially opened in August 2022, to honour the 90th birthday of Queen Sirikit, Thailand's queen mother. Some attractions, including a museum, are still unfinished.

It is unusual for a big city to add significant tracts of new parkland, especially in densely populated South-east Asia. The US$20 million (S$27.1 million) addition is nearly twice the size of the original park, which features a lake and popular jogging path.

Bangkok, which has 11 million residents, needs more places like it.