Air Pollution Drives Bangkok Government To Close 352 Schools, Eliminate Public Transit Fares

[hatrack]

Air pollution in Thailand’s capital forced the closure of more than 350 schools on Friday, city authorities said, the highest number in five years.

Bangkok officials announced free public transport for a week in a bid to reduce traffic in a city notorious for noxious exhaust fumes. Seasonal air pollution has long afflicted Thailand, like many countries in the region, but this week’s hazy conditions have shuttered the most schools since 2020.

“Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has closed 352 schools across 31 districts due to air pollution,” the authority said. On Thursday, more than 250 schools in Bangkok were closed due to pollution, as officials urged people to work from home and restricted heavy vehicles in the city. Air pollution hits the south-east Asian nation seasonally, as colder, stagnant winter air combines with smoke from crop stubble burning and car fumes.

On Friday morning, the level of PM2.5 pollutants – cancer-causing microparticles small enough to enter the bloodstream through the lungs – hit 108 micrograms a cubic metre, according to IQAir. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 24-hour average exposures should not be more than 15 for most days of the year.

EDIT

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/24/bangkok-pollution-hundreds-schools-closed-free-public-transport