Bangkok is a megacity, with a population of over 9 million, and a metropolitan area population of more than 17 million. About a quarter of Thailand’s total population lives in the metropolitan area, making Bangkok a major cultural and economic center. On my visit to the city I stayed with a friend who has an apartment in Ekkamai, just off Sukhumvit Road, a major thoroughfare that leads from Bangkok’s old city center, with its Grand Palace, National Museum and elaborate Buddhist temples, southeast toward the Cambodian border, about 300 miles away.
About 25 years ago, an elevated rail line was built along a stretch of Sukhumvit Road. The Sukhumvit Line, part of Bangkok’s BTS Skytrain system, created a dominating structure running high above the wide avenue. The tracks run on long concrete viaduct sections 40–50 feet above the road and spanning about 100 feet between tall, monumental concrete columns. Over time, the system of rails and stations has evolved into an elevated world of its own, with the city growing around it. Stairs rise from the sidewalks to the stations, and from the station concourses to the train platforms above. Wide pedestrian walkways run high above the street, just below the rail lines, extending from the stations toward high-rise towers and numerous luxury malls. From these elevated walkways, there are views down onto the activity below as well as connections into the buildings alongside the line.
Over the course of my stay I returned to this elevated world a number of times to observe and photograph it, and to look again at the complexity of the system and the activities within and around it: Throngs of people moving in and out, trains constantly arriving and departing, platforms crowded one moment and nearly empty the next, and the activity on the streets below and in the adjacent malls and plazas.
The concrete structure of the Skytrain system also worth looking at carefully. Its aesthetic is somewhat Brutalist. Some parts show obvious signs of age and deterioration. Panels along the sides of the tracks are sometimes missing, and elements that once provided a finished edge to the concrete track platforms are largely lost. Stains streak down the faces of the massive concrete piers and track structures. As is often the case with structures that are aged and/or deteriorated, interesting textures and stains emerge in patterns, and you can get glimpses of how the various components of this enormous structure were put together.
From this perspective, at first glance you wouldn’t notice that the Sukhumvit Line is high above the street below. Many of the buildings in this view from a station platform have been built since the line was constructed, and were designed to connect to both the street and the transit line.From the edge or the Ekkamai platform it’s clearer how the elevated transit line relates to Sukhumvit Road below. Traffic in the lanes that are visible is bumper-to- bumper. The morning haze obscures the long canyon of skyscrapers that extend into the center of the city about 6 or 7 miles away.Here we are at the level of the pedestrian concourses, below the train platforms but above the street. You can see how the plant materials at the edge of the concourse are intended to not only provide a pleasant environment for the elevated pedestrian way, but also to reach out to the opposite tree canopy of the street below.A quiet moment between trains on the Phrom Phong platform, with nice light reflecting off the canopy structure above. The Phrom Phong station is in the midst of the EM District, and the pedestrian concourse just below makes it an easy walk to adjacent upscale malls.An elevated view from a station platform across to some of the older buildings on the street, modest in comparison to the expansive retail emporiums that now dominate the area.A sequence of elements: The transit line is at the right above, the pedestrian concourse is below it, the curved canopies of a station rise beyond, and a pedestrian link with trees and shrubs, above the street and sidewalk below, connects to the shopping mall at the left.Looking up at the Skytrain line above the Phrom Phong station you can see the aging of the 25-plus year-old transit structure. Panels that form a kind of parapet wall on either side of the tracks are deteriorating, and a little farther down fabric has been installed where two panels are missing. Long narrow curved elements are also mostly missing at the edge of the track platform. They were supposed to make the edge more aesthetically pleasing. Their mounting brackets were designed to be hidden, but are now exposed, and the raw concrete platform edge show artifacts of the casting process.One of the widest pedestrian concourses above Sukhumvit leads from Phrom Phong station to EmSphere, the newest upscale shopping mall in the area, ahead on the left. The wide concrete deck of the station platform above becomes a generous protective canopy for the concourse below.A good view of how the plant materials are supported by outward leaning frames that expand the concourse space, provide more sunlight to the plants, and reach out to the opposite tree canopy across the street. The tops of the frames don’t touch the concrete structure of the transit line above, but are rather cantilevered from the pedestrian concourse structure below.EmSphere is above on the left, the newest of the shopping centers in an area that has been branded EM District (the original center was the Emporium, which was followed by EmQuartier). EmSphere is large enough to contain an IKEA. I find the staining on the concrete structure of the transit line interesting. Hopefully they won’t be tempted to paint it.The outwardly spreading capital of a huge transit line support column is now at eye level, ready for close inspection and graffiti.The landscape architects have done a good job in making this a pleasant elevated path by installing a lot of plant materials. Not quite as sophisticated as the High Line in Manhattan, but very nice.A view of the transit and pedestrian concourse levels on the left, above the dense Sukhumvit Road traffic below, with a typical set of stairs down to the sidewalk on the right and the Emporium mall beyond.The facade of the EmQuartier shopping center at the Skytrain concourse level. This is where you go if you need to satisfy your urge to buy Gucci, Dior, Prada, and Chanel.Closer to the old city center, the view of BTS Skytrain structures from the Apple Store at Central World includes both the Sukhumvit Line, below, and the Silom Line above as it curves south.A huge 3D electronic display wraps around the facade of EmSphere. The shadowing used in the ad for a Bangkok internet provider creates a realistic animated scene, including potted plants that appear to be sitting on the entry pavilion roof adjacent to the scene.On the same EmSphere 3D screen an IKEA add features Pixar-like articulated lamps jumping around in another clever animation (IKEA’s Stunning 3D Advertising at EmSphere Bangkok | TikTok)Although new skyscrapers abound along Sukhumvit Road the older building fabric can also be viewed from the Skytrain concourses, as in this example of a little cluster of 6-story buildings, hemmed in by the new construction and looking a bit forlorn.Here the scale of the Skytrain superstructure on the right appears like a huge Star Wars or Dune-like machine that’s just landed next to the wall of retail and residential buildings along Sukhumvit Road. A silvery connector extends to the retail.All along Sukhumvit Road the grey Skytrain track structure and the stairs at the stations are a layer of infrastructure through which you see the street, the sidewalks, and the retail facades.A rare huge empty lot along the stretch of Sukhumvit Road. It’s likely a large-scale development has already been planned.At Benchasiri park, in the midst of the EM District, a traditional Thai-style pavilion looks a bit out of place within the surrounding urban environment.Looking down into a double-decker tourist bus – not my preferred way to explore cities, but useful for getting a good overview.At the street level below the Skytrain a scooter is being used as a mobile kiosk offering a decent selection of fruit.From a Sukhumvit sidewalk, a look up at construction workers setting up scaffolding in front of a new residential construction project. Good balance required, but they’re wearing safety harnesses just in case.At the Ratchadamri station (Silom Line) multiple train lines are suspended over the street. The muscular concrete structures supporting the rail structure contrast with the more precise light metal canopy and railings along the elevated walkway.From a visual point of view I think the elements of the Skytrain work together pretty nicely.One can also frame more abstract views of the Skytrain structures. Here a line of panels forms a bright arc within the dark curves of the track structures.A train speeding through three dimensions of Skytrain structure.The huge concrete beams and viaducts of the Skytrain system intersect with knuckle-like support elements at a stretch where one line is stacked over another. A bit of train is visible at the upper level. The dark stains on the concrete are almost black in some places. Along with the deteriorating panels at the side of the tracks it’s a somewhat dark scene. It would make a good movie set for a film set in an apocalyptic future.Against the dark grey of the Skytrain structures a young man appears in multiple G-Shock watch ads, on marketing skins applied to BTS cars speeding through the concrete.
