Published on The Brunei Times (http://www.bt.com.bn/en)
Trans-Asian railway to become reality
Network of stations: (From Top) An old steam locomotion in Gemas, Malaysia; Phnom Penh railway station; At one of the stations in Vietnam; Travelling through Vietnam by train. Pictures: Liz Price
Sunday, December 14, 2008
IN THE not too distant future, people will be able to travel by train from Singapore to China. And when these lines are complete and open, it means the railway network will link South East Asia to China and Europe.
Years ago there were two legendary train journeys which offered adventure, and had a sense of glamour and appeal of romance. One was the Orient Express, the other was the Trans-Siberian railway. The original Orient Express travelled from Paris to Vienna in 1883. Over the following years the route expanded, and went east to Istanbul in Turkey, and later a branch went from Budapest and Belgrade south to Athens. The train was made even more famous when Agatha Christie wrote "Murder on the Orient Express" (1934).
Today the Orient Express continues to criss-cross Europe, with the London to Venice route being one of the best known and most luxurious. The train uses the Channel Tunnel to cross under the English Channel.
The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network connecting Moscow and the European side of Russia to the Far East which includes some Russian provinces, Mongolia and China. The service started in the 1890s. In 1985 it was my burning desire to take the train back to Europe from China, but it was such a hassle getting all the various visas that I gave up and took the easier option of flying.
One rail journey that is not yet possible is to go from Europe to Singapore. However the China to Singapore option will soon become a reality. China already has a large network of railway lines. And there are more routes being built from Kunming in the southwest province of Yunnan. From here the line will head for the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi. Already two-thirds of the line from Kunming to the Chinese side of the border is completed. From the Vietnamese side at Lao Cai on the border, the line runs south to the capital Hanoi. The railway line that runs through Vietnam linking Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh is aging and needs upgrading.
Much of the funding for the China to Hanoi sector is coming from France and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). This is not the only railway to be upgraded in Vietnam. At least US$15 billion ($22.36 billion) is to be spent on building tramways, sky trains and subways within Hanoi, and a metro in Ho Chi Minh City. Complex upgrading works have Japanese and French assistance. From Ho Chi Minh city, the line will run into Cambodia. In Cambodia, the entire national network is now being overhauled, rehabilitated and privatised, with the help of foreign investors and multilateral funding. However getting from Vietnam to the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh is still difficult.
From the Vietnamese border at Loc Ninh to Phnom Penh, the terrain demands several challenging bridges. China has funded the feasibility studies, but the money has not yet been found to meet the costs of the Cambodian project, an estimated US$500 million.
Going west from Phnom Penh to Thailand is a major problem as the railway lines were torn up in this area by the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. Work is underway on the 48 km missing on the Cambodian side, from Sisophon to Poipet.
On the Thai side things look much better, and the Thai government is fixing up the six missing kilometres of track on their side. For the Thailand to Laos connection, just a few kilometres are missing. And the Thai government will pay for the rail track over the Friendship Bridge that crosses the Mekong River between the two countries. Once across the river in Laos, a few more kilometres are needed for the line to reach the Laotian capital Vientiane.
This has got the South-East Asian mainland countries linked to Indo-China, so the next step is to connect the line to the South-East Asian peninsula. Malaysia has been doing double tracking of its lines for the last decade or so. It is hoped that it will be possible to catch a train from Singapore to Phnom Penh within two years, and from Phnom Penh to Ho Chi Minh City within five years.
Governments are realising there is an ever increasing amount of cargo traffic, which needs to be transported effectively and cost efficiently, and that railways are less intrusive than roads.
And there are yet more plans, depending if mountains and rivers can be tamed. One idea is to link the Chinese rail southward through Laos along the Mekong River, although the technical challenges offered by the dramatic landscapes would make this expensive.
And even more far-fetched idea is to link China to Myanmar and then to the coast. However this suggestion may not be realised as there are huge mountain ranges in the way, not to mention the political problems in the cash-strapped Myanmar.
There is still the problem of getting visas for international travellers, but some of the border crossings are getting easier and opening up more between Indochina and China.
The Trans-Asian Railway will soon link Europe to several parts of Asia, enabling freight to be carried. And it will certainly be a great adventure for passengers travelling from Singapore to London or even Venice. The Brunei Times
Years ago there were two legendary train journeys which offered adventure, and had a sense of glamour and appeal of romance. One was the Orient Express, the other was the Trans-Siberian railway. The original Orient Express travelled from Paris to Vienna in 1883. Over the following years the route expanded, and went east to Istanbul in Turkey, and later a branch went from Budapest and Belgrade south to Athens. The train was made even more famous when Agatha Christie wrote "Murder on the Orient Express" (1934).
Today the Orient Express continues to criss-cross Europe, with the London to Venice route being one of the best known and most luxurious. The train uses the Channel Tunnel to cross under the English Channel.
The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network connecting Moscow and the European side of Russia to the Far East which includes some Russian provinces, Mongolia and China. The service started in the 1890s. In 1985 it was my burning desire to take the train back to Europe from China, but it was such a hassle getting all the various visas that I gave up and took the easier option of flying.
One rail journey that is not yet possible is to go from Europe to Singapore. However the China to Singapore option will soon become a reality. China already has a large network of railway lines. And there are more routes being built from Kunming in the southwest province of Yunnan. From here the line will head for the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi. Already two-thirds of the line from Kunming to the Chinese side of the border is completed. From the Vietnamese side at Lao Cai on the border, the line runs south to the capital Hanoi. The railway line that runs through Vietnam linking Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh is aging and needs upgrading.
Much of the funding for the China to Hanoi sector is coming from France and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). This is not the only railway to be upgraded in Vietnam. At least US$15 billion ($22.36 billion) is to be spent on building tramways, sky trains and subways within Hanoi, and a metro in Ho Chi Minh City. Complex upgrading works have Japanese and French assistance. From Ho Chi Minh city, the line will run into Cambodia. In Cambodia, the entire national network is now being overhauled, rehabilitated and privatised, with the help of foreign investors and multilateral funding. However getting from Vietnam to the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh is still difficult.
From the Vietnamese border at Loc Ninh to Phnom Penh, the terrain demands several challenging bridges. China has funded the feasibility studies, but the money has not yet been found to meet the costs of the Cambodian project, an estimated US$500 million.
Going west from Phnom Penh to Thailand is a major problem as the railway lines were torn up in this area by the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. Work is underway on the 48 km missing on the Cambodian side, from Sisophon to Poipet.
On the Thai side things look much better, and the Thai government is fixing up the six missing kilometres of track on their side. For the Thailand to Laos connection, just a few kilometres are missing. And the Thai government will pay for the rail track over the Friendship Bridge that crosses the Mekong River between the two countries. Once across the river in Laos, a few more kilometres are needed for the line to reach the Laotian capital Vientiane.
This has got the South-East Asian mainland countries linked to Indo-China, so the next step is to connect the line to the South-East Asian peninsula. Malaysia has been doing double tracking of its lines for the last decade or so. It is hoped that it will be possible to catch a train from Singapore to Phnom Penh within two years, and from Phnom Penh to Ho Chi Minh City within five years.
Governments are realising there is an ever increasing amount of cargo traffic, which needs to be transported effectively and cost efficiently, and that railways are less intrusive than roads.
And there are yet more plans, depending if mountains and rivers can be tamed. One idea is to link the Chinese rail southward through Laos along the Mekong River, although the technical challenges offered by the dramatic landscapes would make this expensive.
And even more far-fetched idea is to link China to Myanmar and then to the coast. However this suggestion may not be realised as there are huge mountain ranges in the way, not to mention the political problems in the cash-strapped Myanmar.
There is still the problem of getting visas for international travellers, but some of the border crossings are getting easier and opening up more between Indochina and China.
The Trans-Asian Railway will soon link Europe to several parts of Asia, enabling freight to be carried. And it will certainly be a great adventure for passengers travelling from Singapore to London or even Venice. The Brunei Times
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I am a lazy reader but this is all I can say, " It will not happens during my life time, shit."
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