The Democracy Bridge 1954 or Seriprachathippatai 2497 Bridge (, abbreviated as Seriprachathippatai Bridge) is a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

across the

Mun River The Mun River (, , ; , ), sometimes spelled ''Moon River'', is a tributary of the Mekong River. It carries approximately of water per year. Geography The river begins in the Khao Yai National Park area of the Sankamphaeng Range, near Nakhon R ...

in Ubon Ratchathani Province,

northeast Thailand Northeast Thailand or Isan (Isan language, Isan/, ; ; also written as Isaan, Isarn, Issarn, Issan, Esan, or Esarn; from Pāli ''isāna'' or Sanskrit ईशान्य ''īśānya'' "northeast") consists of 20 provinces in northeastern Thai ...

History

Seriprachathippatai Bridge is the first bridge that across Mun River of Ubon Ratchathani connecting between Warin Chamrap Town-Municipality in Warin Chamrap District and

Ubon Ratchathani Ubon Ratchathani (, ) is one of the four main cities in Thailand's Isan region, alongside Nakhon Ratchasima (Khorat), Udon Thani, and Khon Kaen, collectively known as the "big four of Isan." Located on the Mun River in the southeastern Isan, ...

in Mueang Ubon Ratchathani District, a province capital, which is away. The construction began in 1953, the cost was eight million

baht The baht (; , ; currency sign, sign: ฿; ISO 4217, code: THB) is the official currency of Thailand. It is divided into 100 ''satang'' (, ). Prior to decimalisation, the baht was divided into eight ''fueang'' (, ), each of eight ''at'' (, ). The ...

from the national budget by the Municipal Public Works Department (now Department of Public Works and Town & Country Planning) was a design agency and supervising the construction. The bridge was wide and long, supervised by Prasit Suthatkul, and contracted by Kamjorn Construction Company. Construction was completed in 1954 with no welded steel frames with only three piers. It was the longest bridge in Thailand at that time. The naming of the bridge was in accordance with government guidelines at the time (

Phibul 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 Kha ...

government), with anti-communist policies. Hence the name "Seriprachathippatai", which means "liberal democracy" and 1954, the year the bridge was opened (corresponds to 2497 according to the

Buddhist calendar The Buddhist calendar is a set of lunisolar calendars primarily used in Tibet, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam as well as in Malaysia and Singapore and by Chinese populations for religious or o ...

). The bridge was rebuilt in 1992 on the original site due to deterioration over time, coincides with the year that Ubon Ratchathani marks the 200th anniversary. It is now regarded as a bridge spanning the Mun River of Ubon Ratchathani paired with adjacent the Rattanakosin 200 Years Bridge, that built on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of Rattanakosin Kingdom (Bangkok) in 1982.

Cites

{{reflist Bridges in Thailand 1954 establishments in Thailand Bridges completed in 1954 Buildings and structures in Ubon Ratchathani province