Khae Rai (, ) is the name of a major
road intersection
An intersection or an at-grade junction is a junction where two or more roads converge, diverge, meet or cross at the same height, as opposed to an interchange, which uses bridges or tunnels to separate different roads. Major intersections are ...
and its surrounding neighborhood in downtown
Nonthaburi
Nonthaburi (, ) is the principal city of the district and province of the same name in Thailand.
On 15 February 1936, Nonthaburi town municipality ('' thesaban mueang'') was established, which only covered Suan Yai subdistrict (''tambon''), j ...
, a northern suburb city of
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...
and the administrative seat of
Nonthaburi province. Formed by the crossing of
Ngam Wong Wan/Rattanathibet and Tiwanon roads, it lies within
Bang Kraso subdistrict of
Mueang Nonthaburi district, and is home to government offices of both the city and the province as well as commercial and residential developments. It serves as a mass transit interchange between the
MRT Purple Line
The MRT Purple line () or MRT Chalong Ratchadham line () is Bangkok's fifth rapid transit line, following the Sukhumvit Line, Silom Line, Blue Line, and Airport Rail Link. The line is long, serving the north-western area of Bangkok running ...
and
Pink Line, as well as the planned
Brown Line.
History
Khae Rai originated as a three-way junction where the final stretch of
Ngam Wong Wan Road (leading from Bang Khen to the east) met Tiwanon Road (which connected Pracharat Road and the old Nonthaburi provincial center to the south, and
Pak Kret
Pak Kret (, ) is a city (''thesaban nakhon'') in Nonthaburi province, Thailand. It lies in the Central Thailand plains on the east bank of the lower Chao Phraya River, bordering Bangkok to the east, Mueang Nonthaburi district of Nonthaburi provi ...
and
Pathum Thani
Pathum Thani (, ) is a town ('' thesaban mueang'') in central Thailand, directly north of Bangkok. It is the capital of the Pathum Thani province, Thailand as well as the Mueang Pathum Thani district. As of 2005, it has a population of 18,320, c ...
to the north).
Both were built as part of a major countrywide transport infrastructure development project initiated by the government of Prime Minister
Plaek Phibunsongkhram
Plaek Phibunsongkhram; 14 July 1897 – 11 June 1964) was a Thai military officer and politician who served as the third prime minister of Thailand from 1938 to 1944 and again from 1948 to 1957. He rose to power as a leading member of the Kh ...
during the post-World War II period, and were completed and named in 1950. In 1983,
Rattanathibet Road
Highway 302 is a national highway in greater Bangkok, Thailand. It includes two connecting roads: Rattanathibet Road and Ngam Wong Wan Road.
Route 302 is long, of which is in Nonthaburi, and is in Bangkok.[Chao Phraya River
The Chao Phraya River is the major river in Thailand, with its low alluvial plain forming the centre of the country. It flows through Bangkok and then into the Gulf of Thailand.
Etymology
Written evidence of the river being referred to by the ...]
, thus making it a four-way intersection.
There is an overpass along the Ngam Wong Wan–Rattanathibet direction.
In 1992, the government offices of Nonthaburi city and province moved from their old location at
Nonthaburi Pier to a new site on Rattanathibet Road, near the intersection. Commercial development gradually arose, mostly as
shophouse
A shophouse is a building type serving both as a residence and a commercial business. It is defined in the dictionary as a building type found in Southeast Asia that is "a shop opening on to the pavement and also used as the owner's residence ...
s along the roads, as Khae Rai became a major traffic hub. Real estate development was spurred in 2003 when a rapid transit line passing through the area was included as part of the
Bangkok Mass Transit Master Plan, and developers bought up properties for redevelopment into high-rise residential condominiums, several of which now dot the neighborhood.
The intersection is well-known for its traffic jams, as it receives traffic from the western side of the Chao Phraya via
Phra Nang Klao Bridge, which have worsened as Bangkok's urban sprawl extended westward across the river. There were plans to build another underpass along the Tiwanon direction but the design was protested by locals in 2008 and was never constructed. In 2016, the overpass was renovated with the addition of a fifth special lane that switches traffic direction during rush hour; The original overpass had 2 lanes in each direction with a concrete barrier in between.
Name
The name ''Khae Rai'' had previously been subject to confusion over its proper orthography and etymology, and was for some time spelled and pronounced as ''Khae Lai'' (, )—''khae'' being the Thai name of the
vegetable hummingbird, a small perennial plant, and ''lai'' meaning 'patterned'—based on the assumption that the name came from their white and red flowers which formed patterns like multicoloured fabrics when seen from afar. However, this was often questioned, and the
Royal Society of Thailand
The Royal Society (; ; ) is the national academy of Thailand responsible for academic works of the Thai government.
The secretariat of the society is the Office of the Royal Society (; ), formerly known as the Royal Institute (; ). The office ...
subsequently determined that the correct spelling from the etymological point of view should be ''Khae Rai'', which means 'lined with vegetable hummingbirds', a reference to the road's landscape during the junction's early days.
Places
The area around Khae Rai is home to a growing number of real estate and public utilities, including condominiums, residential developments, government offices, shopping malls, and shophouses.
The following are located in Nonthaburi Civic Center, located to the west of the intersection:
* Nonthaburi Provincial Hall
* Nonthaburi
Provincial Administrative Organization
* Nonthaburi
City Municipality Office
* Nonthaburi Provincial Court
* Nonthaburi
City Pillar Shrine
* Makut Rommayasaran Park (), a public park
* etc.
The following are located in the Ministry of Public Health complex southeast of the intersection:
*
Ministry of Public Health
* Food and Drug Administration
* Department of Disease Control
* National Vaccine Institute
*
Srithanya Hospital
Srithanya Hospital () is the largest psychiatric hospital in Thailand, located in Mueang Nonthaburi District, Nonthaburi Province. It is adjacent to the headquarters of the Ministry of Public Health and is operated by the Department of Mental He ...
* Social Security Office Headquarters
* Office of the Civil Service Commission (OCSC)
* etc.
Mass transit
The intersection is a mass transit interchange in Nonthaburi province between MRT Purple Line, Pink Line and Brown Line.
The Purple Line, an elevated heavy rail line, has been in operation since 2016 and has station
Nonthaburi Civic Center MRT station on the west of intersection and
Ministry of Public Health MRT station
Ministry of Public Health station (, ) is a Bangkok MRT station on the Purple Line. The station opened on 6 August 2016 and is located on Tiwanon road in Nonthaburi Province. The station has four entrances. It is located near the headquarters o ...
further down the south on Tiwanon Road. Pink Line, elevated monorail line has been in service since 21 November 2023, has Nonthaburi Civic Center station as the terminal station on the west and Khae Rai station on the north of intersection on Tiwanon Road. Brown Line, an elevated monorail line, is still in the planned stage with timeline to open in 2027. The line will also start from Nonthaburi Civic Center station on the west with another Ngam Wong Wan 2 station on the east of intersection.
Through all 3 lines share the same exchange station name Nonthaburi Civic Center Station, Purple line's station is located at one corner of Makut Rommayasaran Park on Rattanathibet Road while Pink and Brown lines' are located at the other corner to avoid blocking the view of the park. A 340-meter skywalk links between Purple and Pink/Brown stations while Pink and Brown lines will have about a 45-meter skywalk between the two.
References
{{Nonthaburi
category:Neighbourhoods in Thailand
Road junctions in Thailand
category:Geography of Nonthaburi province