New Mahachai-Mae Sot bus route for migrants

Bangkok Post reports on a new bus route for migrants from Mahachai to Mae Sot.

"A new bus route to Tak's Mae Sot was launched yesterday to help transport Myanmar migrant workers and their families to the border more comfortably... The new direct route will take Myanmar workers from Mahachai in Samut Sakhon province directly to the border at Mae Sot... It will help migrants travel home with more convenience and dignity, says the Migrant Workers' Rights Network (MWRN)... More importantly, the migrants can travel with some dignity as the bus will go through only one or two checkpoints where authorities will get on the bus to check their papers... Until now, the migrants have had to disembark from their shuttle buses or pickup trucks five or six times during the trip to be checked by officials... Very often, some of the workers were harassed and humiliated although they were carrying proper documents.. About 200 Myanmar workers travel to Mae Sot from Bangkok's Mor Chit Bus Terminal daily. That number is expected to increase to 300 a day during Songkran and other long holidays."