I can’t help but be mesmerized by the intensity of traffic in downtown Bangkok. I’ve experienced some heavy-duty congestion in Hanoi, Hyderabad and Nairobi. Even PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) can get clogged up during rush hours. But those places don’t come anywhere close insofar of the fierce force and magnitude of all of Bangkok’s cars, trucks, buses, tuk-tuks, motorcycles, skytrains, subways, cyclists and pedestrians heading somewhere simultaneously.

Yesterday, I walked from the shopping district at Siam Center/Siam Discovery/Siam Paragon via Sukhumvit Road all the way to Thong Lor, soi 23, which is about a distance of 10 kilometers. There’s always street-level activity going on along Sukhumvit Road and yesterday was no exception. The noise level is almost deafening and the air thick with fumes. Still, I always get a few good shots and decent footage during my urban treks. Yeah, I know, Bangkok is certainly not the healthiest place to powerwalk.

As I was hittting the pavement down Sukhumvit, which is the city’s main artery, I reflected now and again about the complexity of Bangkok’s current traffic situation. And it made me wonder if in the future all the buses, trucks, cars, motorcycles and tuk-tuks could likely be replaced with fully autonomous electric vehicles. Most street-level traffic seems to consist of solo drivers in cars, trucks or on motorcycles. So ride sharing alone would for sure help to reduce traffic.

The obvious caveat would be that the prosperous and super-influential petrochemical industry would fight to the very last drop of oil before allowing such a scenario. Unless of course, we all use fossil fuels to generate electricity needed to charge all the batteries.

Before the Skytrain was inaugurated 1999, getting around Bangkok was a tedious and an unpredictable activity. At times it could be a real nightmare. Back in the late 1980, depending on the time of day, taking a cab from Silom or Sathorn to Asoke or Thong Lor in the Sukhumvit district, could take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour and a half. It was absolutely nuts.

Today, the Skytrain is very popular and has become the preferred way to move about in Bangkok. Which means that during rush hours, it’s almost as crowded as on Tokyo’s morning subway along the Ginza line. They might need to hire official pushers and shovers soon.

I shot the clips for the above short film during these last couple of days. Mostly with my iPhone and a GoPro.

More images from Bangkok can be enjoyed here.