The Department of Land Transport (“DLT”) is currently holding a public hearing on the Draft Amendment to the Land Transport Act (“Draft”). Recognizing that public transport directly impacts citizens’ daily lives and safety, the DLT aims to maintain a robust, committee-based licensing framework to ensure transparent oversight, fair fares, and orderly services. However, to make this regulatory system more agile, the Draft introduces a significant shift toward decentralization. By delegating key regulatory and operational powers to Local Government Organizations (“LGOs”) and Provincial Land Transport Control Committees, the amendment seeks to empower local authorities to respond effectively to their communities’ specific needs without compromising national transport standards.
The Draft legislation introduces five major updates:
- Empowering Local Governments: LGOs that have statutory duties regarding transportation will be explicitly granted the right to apply for transport operation licenses. This covers regular route transport, non-regular route transport, and small vehicle transport.
- Decentralized Routes and Fares: Provincial Land Transport Control Committees will be granted the authority to determine transport routes and set passenger fares for regular transport services strictly within their respective provinces. This removes the previous bottleneck of requiring approval from the Central Land Transport Control Committee.
- Station Zoning Authority: The power to designate locations for establishing transport stations within a province will shift from the Central Committee to the Provincial Committees, as delegated by the Central Committee.
- DLT Station Establishment: When the DLT establishes transport stations, it will require approval from the Central Committee for stations in Bangkok, or the respective Provincial Committee for stations in other provinces.
- Private Station Licensing: Entities seeking to establish and operate transport stations must obtain a license from either the Central Registrar, with Central Committee approval, or the Provincial Registrar, with Provincial Committee approval, depending on the station’s jurisdiction.
The public hearing period is scheduled from 14 August 2026 to 13 September 2026.
Proposed Amendments to Thailand’s Land Transport Act_Bangkok Global Law