🚌 Good morning! In our recent reader poll, 74% said not knowing bus routes, numbers or stops was their biggest hurdle to riding in Bangkok. That’s the gap students from Sriwisa Transit are trying to close. Read about their effort.

🕊️ City Hall says it’s on the path to becoming a “Human Rights City.” I’m hosting a walk through Phra Nakhon on July 29, Aug. 1 and Aug. 8 to test that claim against issues like homelessness, gender equality and community preservation. RSVP now.

Bangkok recorded more deaths than births in 2025 for the first time in at least a decade, with 48,869 deaths outnumbering 45,685 births, a gap of 3,184, according to data from the Bureau of Registration Administration.

Why it matters: As the city ages, working-age residents are shouldering more of the cost. For every 100 working-age people in Bangkok, about 40 now support an older adult.

Zooming in: Samphanthawong recorded 50 deaths and zero births last year. Of all 50 districts, 18 now meet the United Nations’ threshold for “super aged society,” and 27 meet its “complete aged society” criteria.

Gov. Chadchart Sittipunt opened his second term’s first official meeting Wednesday with four priorities: aging shophouses, illegal foreign-run vendors, the On Nut waste facility’s odor problem and corruption.

Why it matters: All four were complaints his opponents raised repeatedly during the campaign.

Most ‘urgent’: Following a shophouse canopy collapse last month, the city is asking owners of 65,645 shophouses older than 50 years to inspect their buildings within two weeks. Another 16,400 high-rises will also be checked for safety compliance.

Next in line: District offices have one month to compile data on foreign-run businesses the governor called “suspicious,” with a focus on street vendors — one of 40 jobs reserved for Thai nationals. Inspections include licensing and permit compliance.

On corruption: The permanent secretary has seven days to report back on 17 of the 24 projects tied to the fitness equipment procurement scandal that remain stalled. The scandal caused an estimated 103.2 million baht in damage.

What to watch: The city said it will publish data from odor sensors and CCTVs at the On Nut dump before converting the site into a park.

Prajadhipok Road near Wongwian Yai remains closed after more than 40 millimeters of rain Wednesday caused water to breach the MRT Purple Line tunnel construction site. Nearby residents were evacuated for a week.

Why it matters: Officials worry about a repeat of last September’s Samsen sinkhole, caused in part by a similar leak. Both incidents involve the same MRT line: a 23-kilometer route from Tao Poon to Rat Burana that’s now 76% complete.

Zooming in: One commercial building has tilted 10 degrees toward the road, Channel 7 reported. A dental clinic in the building relocated its equipment. Its owner told the outlet the business is losing more than 400,000 baht a day.

What’s next: The city is monitoring ground movement within a 30-meter radius and working to stop water and soil from flowing into the tunnel.

A new Chulalongkorn University study of Bangkok office workers — who make an average of 31,400 baht a month — found that formal employment no longer guarantees food security in the city’s central business districts.

Why it matters: Researchers called it “hidden” food insecurity. These workers aren’t going without food, but they skip meals, eat low-quality, high-carb food or run out of grocery money by month’s end.

By the numbers: Participants spent an average of 265 baht a day on food and less than 50 baht per meal. Rent and commuting eat into that budget first. Food prices rose 106.5% over the past 13 years, through 2025.

Zooming in: Most workers eat breakfast and lunch at their office desks, relying on convenience stores, sidewalk vendors and delivery apps.

What’s next: The report urges employers to add kitchenettes and flexible lunch hours and calls on the city to treat food access as part of urban planning rather than a personal budgeting issue.

Asset World Corporation is building a cable car across the Chao Phraya, linking Asiatique to MONA Bangkok, a new museum on the Thonburi side developed with Australia’s Museum of Old and New Art.

Why it matters: The private investment lands alongside two city-led projects by the Chadchart administration on the same stretch of the river — a pedestrian bridge across the Chao Phraya near Song Wat and an arts hub in Khlong San.

By the numbers: The cable car is part of a broader 14-billion-baht plan to expand Asiatique sixfold, from 35,000 to 224,000 square meters. Construction is expected to take three years.

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