Bangkok Metropolitan Region กรุงเทพมหานครและปริมณฑล | |
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.jpg) True-color image of Bangkok and its surrounding provinces | |
 A map of the Bangkok Metropolitan Region. The red are city-level municipalities and Bangkok's 50 districts. The orange is the town-level municipalities. The yellow are township-level municipalities. | |
| Country |  Thailand |
| Region | Central Thailand |
| Provinces | Bangkok Nonthaburi Nakhon Pathom Pathum Thani Samut Prakan Samut Sakhon |
| Area | |
| • Metro | 7,680.7 km2 (2,965.5 sq mi) |
| Population | |
| • Metro | 17,400,000 |
| • Metro density | 2,270/km2 (5,870/sq mi) |
| GDP(Nominal, 2023) | |
| • Metro | ฿ 8.57 trillion (US$ 248 billion) |
| • Per capita | US$ 14,200 |
| Time zone | UTC+7 (ICT) |
TheBangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR) (Thai:กรุงเทพมหานครและปริมณฑล;RTGS: krung thep maha nakhon lae parimonthon;lit. 'Bangkok and environs'), may refer to a government-defined "political definition" of the urban region surrounding the metropolis of Bangkok, or the built-up area, i.e., urban agglomeration ofBangkok,Thailand, which varies in size and shape, and gets filled in as development expands.
The political definition is defined asthe metropolis and the five adjacent provinces ofNakhon Pathom,Pathum Thani,Nonthaburi,Samut Prakan, andSamut Sakhon.
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The Bangkok Metropolitan Region (political definition) covers an area of 7,680.7 km2 (2,965.5 sq mi).
Due to the success of the service andindustry in Bangkok, the city has gained in popularity for work among provincial Thais from the rural areas and with people from many countries in the Indochina region as well as many South Asian countries. Since around the turn of the century, there has been a large influx ofIndians into Thailand (especiallyPunjabis,Gujaratis,Tamils andPashtuns), and alsoPersians,Portuguese,Khmer Krom,Mons,Chinese, as well as others emigrating to Thailand and Bangkok. There are large numbers of workers who legally reside outside the metropolitan area and travel into the city for day jobs. The population of the Bangkok metropolis ("the city") increases to nine million during the day, from eight million at night. The morning influx into the greater metropolitan region is not very significant, rather the influx is seasonal depending upon crop seasons in the rest of the country.
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Bangkok has seen rapid urbanization since its population reached two million in the 1960s. Since the 1980s, greater Bangkok's built-up areas have spilled beyond Bangkok's borders to neighboring provinces, initially to the north and south. Despite a general suburbanization trend, Bangkok remained centralized and the city core remained extremely dense until the early 2000s as heavy commuter traffic limited choices. The countryside between once independent towns and the capital became ever more filled in, with the advent and expansion of urban rail transit, as well as cheap credit enabling automobile adoption by the working class. The outward push of suburbanization has intensified aspark and ride lots near train stations have sprung up.
In a manner similar to Los Angeles, Bangkok is transforming into a region where traffic flows in all directions rather than simply to the central core, as it once did. Suburbanization has swallowed ever more fields and swamps, though even parts of Bangkok itself are not built-up. The first areas to suburbanize were in Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi, and Samut Prakan Provinces. Other areas more recently have agglomerated in Samut Sakhon and Nakhon Pathom. Samut Prakan, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani and Samut Sakhon all have historic city centers.
Due to a lack of strictzoning laws, the metropolitan areas' growth appears haphazard. Central areas like Yaowarat, Siam, Sukhumvit, and Sathorn have seen skyrocketing land speculation as foreign investors are allowed to own condominiums, giving rise toManhattanization. At the same time, fringe areas are being developed and the boundaries are no longer visible between each provincial city center. Due to the speed of thisurban sprawl over the past twenty years,[when?] the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has sought to tackle rising problems of commute times, pollution, and deteriorating air quality. Air quality has been declining year by year,[2][3][4][5] and the city still lacks an effective mass transit network outside Bangkok proper and a clean and effective plan to resolve environmental issues.
| Administrative Area | Area km2 | Population (2000Cf) | Population (2010Cp) | Population (2011DPA Registered) | Population (Jul 2017 ProjectionNational Stat Office) | Population (Dec 2022DPA Registered**) | Population (2022-2023) | Pop.Density inhabitants/km2(2017 NSO) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bangkok(Metropolis) | 1,568.737 | 6,355,144 | 8,249,117 | 5,674,843 | 8,750,600 | 5,527,994 | 11,070,000[6] | 7056.63 |
| Nonthaburi | 622.30 | 816,614 | 1,333,623 | 1,122,627 | 1,549,000 | 1,288,637 | 1,001,000[6] | 1608.54 |
| Samut Prakan | 1,004.50 | 1,028,401 | 1,828,044 | 1,223,302 | 2,089,200 | 1,356,449 | 1,359,000[6] | 1352.91 |
| Pathum Thani | 1,525.90 | 677,649 | 1,326,617 | 1,010,898 | 1,495,100 | 1,190,060 | 1,190,060 | 779.90 |
| Samut Sakhon | 872.30 | 466,281 | 885,559 | 499,098 | 971,200 | 586,789 | 586,789 | 672.69 |
| Nakhon Pathom | 2,168.30 | 815,122 | 942,560 | 866,064 | 1,079,400 | 922,171 | 922,171 | 425.29 |
| Bangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR) | 7,762[7] | 10,159,211 | 14,565,520 | 10,396,832 | 15,931,300 | 10,872,100 | !16,129,020 | 2,077.94 |
Sources:
For FY 2022, Bangkok Metropolitan Region had a combined economic output of 8.1 trillion baht (US$231 billion), or around half of Thailand's GDP. Bangkok (BMA) had an economic output of 5.747 trillion baht (US$164 billion). This amounts to a GPP per capita of 634,109 baht (US$18,100), half more than Samut Sakhon province, next in the ranking and more than three times for Nonthaburi province, lowest in the ranking.[1]
| Rank | Province | GPP (billion baht) | Population | GPP per capita (baht) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bangkok (BMA) | 6,142.910 | 9,063,000 | 675.979 |
| 2 | Samut Sakhon | 410.768 | 1,087,000 | 374.056 |
| 3 | Samut Prakan | 757.502 | 2,327,000 | 320.294 |
| 4 | Nakhon Pathom | 398.298 | 1,243,000 | 316.636 |
| 5 | Pathum Thani | 460.312 | 1,841,000 | 246.463 |
| 6 | Nonthaburi | 400.388 | 1,838,000 | 214.515 |
| BMR | 8,570.179 | 17,399,000 | 465,334 |
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As of 31 October 2012, some 7,384,934 vehicles were registered in the metro area, roughly one vehicle for every two persons.[15] To alleviate the ensuing congestion, massive railway development is ongoing, but its construction is causing large scale disturbance to major thoroughfares.
Bangkok's last undisturbed forested zone,Bang Kachao, inSamut Prakan'sPhra Pradaeng District, also known as "the green lung" or (Thai:กระเพาะหมู;RTGS: krapho mu) ('pig's stomach', due to its shape) is threatened by urban sprawl, especially since a new city plan was implemented by Samut Prakan authorities. The plan has changed the pure green area to a "green and white" area, which allows residents to grow crops. Bang Kachao covers over 11,818rai in six tambons in Phra Pradaeng.[16]
