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  1. #1
    Thailand Expat
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    Thailand : Govt to improve, extend railways

    Govt to improve, extend railways
    9/08/2009

    The government will improve the railway services and facilities nationwide, and plans to extend the routes to nearby countries, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said on Sunday.

    "The dilapidated railways will have to be improved. Trains could not travel at high speed on some tracks because they have not been renovated for decades," Mr Abhisit said.

    He said certain routes, such as the route connecting Chachoengsao and Laem Chabang, would have a dual rail system.

    Trains and train stations would also be renovated to ensure hygiene and offer more convenience to passengers, he said.

    "The government has an idea to extend the railway network to neighbouring countries such as China and Cambodia," the prime minister said.

    He said the government will continue to discuss ways to improve the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) by dividing its operations such as assets management and train operations.

    bangkokpost.com

  2. #2
    Dan
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    Good. Public transport needs to be developed.

  3. #3
    Have you got any cheese Thetyim's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mid
    The government has an idea to extend the railway network to neighbouring countries such as China
    They have been talking about it for 15 years and probably a long time before I came to Thailand

  4. #4
    Excommunicated baldrick's Avatar
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    until the SRT staff is cleaned out nothing will help - though this is a step in the right direction

  5. #5
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    Much needed, fingers crossed it comes off...

    How about more BTS building too...

  6. #6
    Thailand Expat terry57's Avatar
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    I've travelled on every rail line to every part of Thailand.

    It will be good to get the upgrade but I must say that the trains are not to bad at the moment, the sleepers are good and the staff make an effort to keep the system clean.

    In other words, a cracking way to explore Thailand.

  7. #7
    Thailand Expat
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mid
    they have not been renovated for decades
    Or since the Brits made em'?????

  8. #8
    splendid and tremendous
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    Forget the trains, concentrate on the twats who drive buses. When I say 'concentrate on' I mean sack them and flog them..

  9. #9
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    At present there is there a train connecting BKK with Chiang Mai?
    I heard it is as dangerous as the BKK airport...thefts and shakedowns.

  10. #10
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    I used to travel by train here and liked it -- overnight private sleeper between Bangkok and Udon. The only place Thailand can extend rail travel outside its borders is to the south. The other borders are shared with Bronze Era cavemen who couldn't jimmy together a railway if their lives depended on it.

  11. #11
    Dan
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    Quote Originally Posted by mtone9317 View Post
    At present there is there a train connecting BKK with Chiang Mai?
    I heard it is as dangerous as the BKK airport...thefts and shakedowns.
    Yes there is and it's completely safe, though get an air-con ticket otherwise you'll be sharing the carriage with 1000s of backpackers.

  12. #12
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    ^ partly true.

    There is aircon second class with hundreds of s*inky, s*ingy Bri**le people and then there's the First Class aircon private sleeper car used by polite America*s and Japa*ese folks who regularly wash up and use deodorant and aren't rude and hideous.

    *edit* some like to make a distinction between News section and Insult section. As if this circus had rules...

    I've edited out any potentially offensive language. Peace.
    Last edited by Texpat; 10-08-2009 at 01:14 PM.

  13. #13
    Thailand Expat
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    The train ride down south isn't too bad but the track is quite rough. Also as it's a single track you have to wait for other trains to pass whilst they head towards Bangers..!!!! I have been motionless for about a hour before???

    I also agree with Somtamslap, the drivers of the buses are horrendus then again the driving standards over here are awful...even my Thai students complain to me regularly. They say that Thai's never think of other road users, let alone pedestrians.

    I beg to differ, Thai's love to give the pedestrians a run for their money....remember the bus shelter anyone....reminds me of the original deathrace 2000 movie...maybe that's why David Carradine topped himself...he thought he was really in his movie and was too scared to venture outside?

  14. #14
    Thailand Expat
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat
    who regularly wash up and use deodorant and aren't rude and hideous.
    ^^ Errrrr Sorry but I have to disagree slightly with that comment...yes the backpacking Brits can be a tad smelly, however I have found it's usually the Thai's that are scared of deodorant and washing IMexperience.

  15. #15
    Pronce. PH said so AGAIN!
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat
    polite
    That word.. I don't think it means what you think it means.

  16. #16
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    Bangkok Post : SRT overhaul will be 'tough'

    SRT overhaul will be 'tough'

    Academics agree that overhauling the debt-ridden State Railway of Thailand will be a tough challenge.

    Sakon Waranyuwattana, an economics lecturer at Thammasat University who studies the SRT's management problems, said tackling the SRT's losses without support and commitment from the government would be hard.

    Previous governments had favoured building roads over railways.

    Even though the Abhisit Vejjajiva government recognised the importance of the railway service more than its predecessors, it was still unable to push for an upgrade of the state railway service.

    He said a budget of 176 billion baht approved by the cabinet to improve the railway service would not be enough to get the SRT back in the black.

    Mr Sakon said the budget had been approved with strings attached.

    The money would be disbursed on condition that the SRT comes up with a viable financial management plan to turn around the losses.

    Mr Sakon said this was impractical because the SRT had never been financially supported by any governments before.

    The 176 billion baht, five-year budget could be spent on repairing and improving rail tracks, but it could not change the SRT for the better, Mr Sakon said.

    He said past governments had ignored the SRT _ done little to improve its management, or upgrade railway infrastructure.

    The country's railway service had made little progress despite the fact that it began more than 100 years ago, Mr Sakon said.

    He suggested rail tracks be repaired, while double track railways be laid and new locomotives acquired to improve the nation's transport logistics.

    Peera Charoenporn, a scholar at the economic research and training centre of Thammasat University, said the SRT was operating at a loss because the government had not allowed the agency to increase train fares.

    He also wondered if the next government would back the plan to improve the SRT.

    If the new government opposed the plan, it could cancel the Abhisit government's 176 billion baht budget resolution, Mr Peera said.

    The SRT has had to invest in repairing and maintaining the rail tracks without government backing, he said.

    Mr Peera said politicians tend to support building roads rather than putting down rail tracks because roads are a more effective way for them to win voter support.

    He said politicians had always interfered in the SRT, particularly the management of land plots it owns.
    "Slavery is the daughter of darkness; an ignorant people is the blind instrument of its own destruction; ambition and intrigue take advantage of the credulity and inexperience of men who have no political, economic or civil knowledge. They mistake pure illusion for reality, license for freedom, treason for patriotism, vengeance for justice."-Simón Bolívar

  17. #17
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    Thailand's 1st high-speed train project set to start in 2014 - Globaltimes.cn

    Thailand's 1st high-speed train project set to start in 2014

    Xinhua | 2013-2-20 21:56:15
    By Agencies

    Thailand expects to break ground for its first high-speed railway at the end of 2014, local media reported on Wednesday.

    The Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima high-speed railway will stop at stations in Ayutthaya, Saraburi and Pak Chong. With an average speed of 250 km per hour, the 256-km distance between the capital city and the northeastern province will be covered in 90 minutes. The fare will be priced at 2.5-3 baht ($0.08-0.1) per kilometer.

    Local transportation authorities are studying the feasibility of the project and a final plan will be put forward before next Feburary.

    Local residents and businesspeople, as well as those whose land will be expropriated to make way for the train project, were given a chance to explain how their lives would be affected, according to project manager Niwat Tansawat.

    He said that once all public hearings are completed for the project, land expropriation will begin next year followed immediately by construction, which will take five years to complete.

    This is part of a major project covering four main routes from the capital, including routes to Chiang Mai, Hua Hin and Pattaya.

  18. #18
    Thailand Expat
    the dogcatcher's Avatar
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    I like a good train wreck.

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