Bangkok Council has rejected a motion from Governor Chadchart Sittipunt asking it to consider whether City Hall has the authority to collect fares for BTS Green Line extensions.
Mr Chadchart on Wednesday tabled a motion seeking the council's opinion regarding the operations of the Green Line and fare collections for the Bearing-Samut Prakan and Mo Chit-Saphan Mai-Khu Khot sections.
However the council rejected the motion, citing a lack of information, he said. It suggested City Hall's committee on traffic and transport study the matter and present a report to the council first.
"Attendees at the meeting agreed that City Hall has no authority to collect fares for Green Line extensions. Such authority lies with a committee set up by a Section 44 order issued by the [now defunct] National Council of Peace and Order," Mr Chadchart said.
"We will present the matter for [Bangkok Council] to reconsider."
"City Hall has only one member, the city clerk, sitting on the committee, while the power rests with the cabinet. City Hall has little say because it is not the main agency [in this matter]," Mr Chadchart said.
He said he was willing to work with any committee set up by the Bangkok Council to find a solution to its debt problem.
"City Hall is willing to repay debts, and it will not default because this is a matter of trust between it and the private sector. But we have to ensure debt repayment is in line with the laws and regulations," the governor said.
"It is not clear whether we can collect fares by the end of this year as several issues need careful consideration."
On Tuesday, Mr Chadchart said he would ask the council to consider collecting a 15-baht fare for each of the two sections. If approved, it could take effect within one month.
He said he would ask the government to shoulder the debt burden incurred from building both sections at a cost of 58 billion baht.
