Southeast Asian countries steadily promote railway connectivity

release time:2023/3/16

At present, the China-Thailand Railway is under construction in full swing. After the completion of the project, it will be connected with the China Laos Railway. At the same time, the freight train "ASEAN Express Train" across Malaysia, Thailand and Laos has been put into operation; Malaysia continues to promote the construction of the East Coast Railway and actively promotes the connection with Thailand's high-speed railway; Cambodia and Laos are also discussing the construction of high-speed railway to connect the two countries... Southeast Asian countries have steadily promoted railway construction and strategic docking, and the level of regional connectivity has continued to improve.
The first phase of the China-Thailand Railway was fully promoted
Bachon County, located in Nakhon Ratchasima in northeastern Thailand, means "mountain pass" in Thai. Bachong County and Nakhon Ratchasima are the gateway from central Thailand to 20 provinces in the northeast, and Nakhon Ratchasima is also the destination of the first phase of the China-Thailand Railway. At present, the first phase of the China-Thailand Railway has entered the comprehensive construction stage. Recently, reporters visited the construction site of the first phase of the China-Thailand Railway in Bachong County (see photo, taken by our reporter Sun Guangyong).
Along the parallel direction of the old railway track, viaduct piers continue to extend forward, and the bridge erecting machine is busy. In order to ensure the construction quality, Weiluo, the deputy leader of the fourth supervision group of the Sino-Thailand Railway Project Department, will take a lift every week to inspect the top and body of the bridge pier, which is tens of meters high. Willow said: "The Chinese team has brought advanced concepts, modern technology and management experience to the railway construction in Thailand. The construction of the railway will not only better connect Thailand and China in the field of transportation, but also realize the communication of ideas and people's hearts."
In addition to Nakhon Ratchasima, the China-Thailand Railway is under intense construction in the cities along the line, such as Dacheng and Beibiao. Section 4-3 of the China-Thailand Railway Project in Dachengfu is the largest section. At present, 1912 pile foundations, 106 pile caps and 17 pier shafts have been completed. In the large beam yard of the project, the roar of machines came from time to time, and the prefabricated segmental beams were placed neatly, which will be erected on the railway viaduct in the future. "In July 2019, we completed the detailed design blueprint of the civil works of the first phase of the China-Thailand Railway Project. The civil works currently under way include bridges, subgrade, tunnels, station buildings, etc." said Ma Shengshuang, general manager of the Thailand Branch of China Railway Design Group Co., Ltd.
The China Thailand Railway Project is divided into two phases. The first phase will connect Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchas, and the second phase will extend to Langkai, an important border trade town in northeastern Thailand just across a river from Vientiane, the capital of Laos, to realize the connection with the China Laos Railway. The Abiwat Central Station in Bangkok will undertake the transfer function between the China-Laos-Thailand high-speed railway and the Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore high-speed railway. Nero, Director of the National Railway Administration of Thailand, said that the total progress of the first phase of the China-Thailand Railway was 16.72% by the middle of January this year and was expected to be put into operation in 2027. The second phase of the project is expected to start in 2024 and strive to be put into use in 2028.
Accelerate the implementation of regional railway connection plan
Recently, a delegation from Thailand's railway and customs departments visited Laos, and the two sides discussed cooperation issues. The China-Laos-Thailand railway may reduce the cost of goods transportation by 30-50% in the next three to five years. In the past year, the supporting process of Thailand's connection with the China-Laos-Thailand Railway has also achieved a great acceleration, including upgrading the domestic transportation network and upgrading the railway hardware facilities, and improving the cargo storage, distribution and quarantine capacity in the northeast. In addition, Thailand also hopes to develop the southern high-speed railway, connect China, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore and other countries, strengthen the transport capacity of ASEAN and promote the development of tourism.
Not long ago, the leaders of Cambodia and Laos held talks to discuss the possibility of connecting high-speed railway between Laos and Cambodia in order to strengthen the connectivity between the two countries. The Cambodian News reported that during the talks, the two sides agreed to connect the two provinces of Champas and Azopo of Laos with the two provinces of Preah Vihear and Latanakiri of Cambodia by railway. At the same time, Sun Zhantuo, Minister of Public Works and Transport of Cambodia, said that Cambodia would build a high-speed railway connecting the capital Phnom Penh and the largest border city of Cambodia and Thailand, with a total length of 382 kilometers and a design speed of 160 to 200 kilometers per hour. The Chinese side supports Cambodia to carry out preliminary work such as railway planning, design and feasibility study, and launch project construction in due time.
Malaysia is also actively promoting the connection with Thailand's high-speed railway. At present, Malaysia has completed the electrification upgrading and reconstruction project of the Kuala Lumpur - Padang Besha Railway in the border city of Malaysia and Thailand, and is also carrying out feasibility studies with Thailand on the upgrading of the Heai - Padang Besha, Bangkok - Heai section of the railway and the construction of the Longman high-speed railway.
The connection of the China-Laos-Thailand Railway will significantly improve the development level of the sub-region, and the Indo-China Peninsula will fully enter the era of high-speed rail. Nero said: "This high-speed railway network will not only connect parts of Thailand, but also form the railway network of ASEAN. When the high-speed railway project is completed and connected, it will become a huge railway transport network for transporting passengers and goods, connecting China, Malaysia, Singapore, Laos and Thailand."
Connectivity boosts regional integration
Last year, the "ASEAN Express Train", a freight train that spans Malaysia, Thailand and Laos, was put into operation. The train uses the existing railway and runs two freight trains a week from Malaysia to Tanarang Station in the southern suburb of Vientiane, Laos, via Thailand. The whole journey is 2206 kilometers, takes 72 hours, and the one-way carrying capacity can reach 80 standard containers.
The Ministry of Transport of Malaysia said that "ASEAN Express Train" is one of the plans implemented by the country to improve and enhance the national railway construction, which will help Malaysia to open up the Southeast Asian railway market faster. In addition, the completion of Malaysia's East Coast Railway Project will effectively link up the China-Laos-Thailand Railway, drive the development of Malaysia's East Coast region, open up the middle line of the Trans-Asian Railway, and accelerate regional integration.
Surasi, director of the Thai-China Strategic Research Center of the National Academy of Thailand, said that through the railway network, Southeast Asian countries have accelerated connectivity and won more market opportunities. The ASEAN Connectivity Master Plan 2025 is deeply linked with the the Belt and Road Initiative, which will strengthen connectivity, reduce logistics costs, promote personnel mobility, create more development opportunities for countries along the route, and promote regional integration.

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