Kunming–Singapore Railway

Kunming–Singapore Railway
Overview
Type Conventional rail & high-speed rail
Status Planned[1]
Locale Cambodia, P.R. China, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore
Termini Kunming, China
Singapore
Operation
Opened ≈ 2021[2]
Technical
Line length 3,900 km (2,400 mi)
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification Overhead catenary
Overview of the missing links (in yellow) the Kunming-Singapore Railway.

The Kunming–Singapore Railway, increasingly called the Pan-Asia Railway Network[3] refers to a network of railways, being planning or under construction, that would connect China, Singapore and all the countries of mainland Southeast Asia. The concept originated with British and French imperialists, who sought to link the railways they had built in southwest China, Indochina and Malaya, but international conflicts in the 20th century kept regional railways fragmented. The idea was formally revived in October 2006 when 18 Asian and Eurasian countries signed the Trans-Asian Railway Network Agreement, which designates the Kunming–Singapore Railway as one of the Trans Asian Railways.

The proposed network consists of three main routes from Kunming, China to Bangkok, Thailand: the Eastern Route via Vietnam and Cambodia; the Central Route via Laos, and the Western Route via Myanmar. The southern half of the network from Bangkok to Singapore has long been operational, though a high-speed line has been proposed.[4]

As of January 2014, construction of sections connecting China with Vietnam, China with Myanmar and Laos with Vietnam are under way. Work on sections in Myanmar and Laos were set to begin in early-2011 with Chinese assistance, but have been delayed. A high-speed rail project in Vietnam with Japanese support was cancelled in 2010 due to high cost. Those sections were originally expected to be completed in 2020.[5] The railway network is expected to increase regional economic integration and increase China's economic ties with Southeast Asia.[5][6]

History

Colonial railways

The British and French Empires first proposed building a railway from Kunming to Singapore in 1900 as Russia was completing the Trans-Siberian Railway.[7] From 1904 to 1910, the French built the Yunnan–Vietnam Railway, to connect Kunming with Hanoi and Haiphong in French Tonkin, now northern Vietnam. In 1936, the Vietnam's main railway, from Hanoi to Saigon was completed. This French-built system was (and still is) metre-gauge.

In 1918, the southern line of the Thailand railway system was connected with British Malaya's west coast line, completing a metre gauge rail link from Bangkok to Singapore.[8] In the late-1930s, the British began to build the Yunnan–Burma Railway but abandoned the effort in 1941 with the outbreak of World War II. In 1942, the railways of Thailand and Cambodia were connected linking Bangkok and Phnom Penh, but this trans-border connection has long since fallen into disuse. The Japanese Empire built the infamous Thailand-Burma Railway using prisoners of war to connect Bangkok and Yangon, but the entire line never entered commercial operation and is now partially submerged by the reservoir behind the Vajiralongkorn Dam.

A continuous metre-gauge rail line from Kunming to Singapore via Hanoi, Saigon, Phenom Penh, Bangkok, and Kuala Lumpur was not realized as the French never built the "missing link" between Phnom Penh and Saigon, choosing to build a highway instead.[9]

21st century revival

In 2000, ASEAN proposed completing the Kunming to Singapore Railway, via Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City (former Saigon), Phnom Penh, and Bangkok.[7][10][11] This 5,500 km (3,400 mi) route is now known as the Eastern Route. In 2004, ASEAN and China proposed the shorter Western Route, which instead of running east through Vietnam and Cambodia, would go west from Kunming to Myanmar and then to Bangkok.[12] In 2007 ASEAN and China proposed building three routes, the Eastern, Western and a Central Route via Laos.[13]

Planning & construction

Eastern Route

Map of Vietnam's railways

Central Route

The Central Route including the Bangkok to Singapore section will be 3,900 km (2,400 mi) in length.[5] When completed, a trip from Kunming to Singapore would take 10 hours by rail on the Central Route (compared to 72 hours from Vientiane to Singapore in April 2011).[5][16][17][18] The line will be used to transport both passengers and cargo.[6][19]

The Central Route consists of the following sections:

In China

In Laos

Map of Laos

This line was originally planned as a high-speed rail joint-venture between the Laotian government and the China Railway Corporation, the Chinese state rail operator, and set to begin construction on 25 April 2011 but was delayed due to a corruption scandal that removed the Chinese railway minister, Liu Zhijun from office.[1][5] The Laotian government then became the sole investor in the project, which is funded with a loan from the Export-Import Bank of China that would cover 70 percent of the project's cost of US$7 billion.[21][22][23] The project was downgraded to a conventional speed railway with a maximum speed of 160 km/h instead of 200 km/h.[22] As the terrain in Laos is mountainous, 76 bridges and 154 tunnels will need to be built.[22] Unexploded bombs that have been dropped during the Vietnam War will have to be removed.[6][20]

The loan finance arrangement for this line was criticized by economists in the West as too expensive for Laos.[24] There is also controversy over villagers whose houses will be moved to accommodate the new railway line. One village, Bopiat in northern Laos, has already been moved once to allow the construction of a casino.[23][25] The National Assembly of Laos approved the project in October 2012, but the construction has not commenced because the Chinese state lender has been waiting since July 2013 for the Thai legislature to approve funding for the Thailand section of the railway line. On 22 July 2014, China's Exim Bank suspended loans to Laotian infrastructure projects, leaving the rail project in jeopardy.[26] On 28 July 2014, at a meeting with Chinese president Xi Jinping in Beijing, Laotian president Choummaly Sayasone asked the Chinese government to continue its assistance of rail development in Laos.[27]

In October 2014, Radio Free Asia reported that China had made a new pledge to finance the project as talks between the two countries continued.[28]

In Thailand

Map of Thailand.

Planning for these lines began during the administration of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva of the Democratic Party, which agreed to borrow US$400 million from China to purchase materials and expertise, and build one high speed line to Nong Khai Province to the north and another to the Padang Basar on the Malaysian border to the south.[30] When Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra of the Puea Thai Party took office in August 2011, the Thai government initially scaled back those plans and proposed shorter lines that connected Thai cities but did not reach international frontiers.[30] Supoj Sablorm, the secretary of the Thai Ministry of Transport, explained that Thailand was not in a rush to build a high-speed rail line to Laos because the Chinese-backed project in Laos had been delayed to beyond 2014.[30] A year later in August 2012, the Thai government announced the plans to build four high-speed rail lines, including extensions to Nong Khai and Hat Yai by 2022.[31] In October 2013, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, on a visit to Thailand, promoted Chinese high-speed rail technology and offered loan packages for high-speed rail construction that are partially repayable with rice and rubber.[32]

On 19 November 2013, the Thai Senate passed a bill that authorized the government to borrow US$69.5 billion to fund high-speed rail and other infrastructure projects in Thailand without going through the annual government budgeting process.[33] The opposition Democratic Party challenged the spending bill in court and a judge expressed doubt about the necessity of high-speed rail for Thailand.[34] The ensuing political protests in Bangkok, which began in December 2013 and continued through May 2014, has paralyzed the Thai government and prevented further decision-making of the rail project.

On 30 July 2014, Thai army chief General Prayut Chan-o-cha, whose forces seized control of the government through a bloodless coup in May, announced plans to build two high-speed rail lines as part of a 741.4 billion baht transportation program.[2] The Nong Khai to Map Ta Phut line, 737 kilometres (458 mi) in length, would run from the Laotian border at Thanaleng to the Gulf of Thailand.[2] The Chiang Khong to Ban Phachi line, 655 kilometres (407 mi) in length, would run from Chiang Rai near the northern tip of Thailand to Ayutthaya just north of Bangkok.[2] The two lines would allow trains to travel at a top speed of 160 km/h.[2] Construction is scheduled to begin in 2015 and is to be completed in 2021.[2]

In November 2014, after a meeting between Li Keqiang and Prayut Chan-o-cha, China agreed to lend Thailand funds to build dual-track standard gauge mid-speed railways on the Bankok-Nong Khai, Bangkok-Map Ta Phut, and Kaeng Khoi-Map Ta Phut routes.[35] The loans could be repaid with rice and rubber.[35] On 4 December 2014, the Thai National Legislative Assembly voted 187-0 with seven abstensions to approve loans for the Nong Khai-Map Ta Phut and Kaeng Khoi-Bangkok lines.[36] China would undertake construction and development of the lines but would not receive land use rights along the routes.[36] On 19 December 2014, the two countries signed a memorandum to build the railways.[37]

As of December 2015, China and Thailand have agreed to build the 845 km double-track rail routes connecting Bangkok-Kaeng Khoi-Nakhon Ratchasima-Khon Kaen-Udon Thani-Nong Khai and a second section connecting Kaeng Khoi-Map Ta Phut. The two parties have not yet reached agreement on financing for the project.[3]

Western Route

The Western Route consists of the following railway sections:

In China

Double-track construction of the Kunming to Guangtong section of the Chengdu–Kunming Railway at Anning in 2012.

In Myanmar

Map of Myanmar

The Kunming-Yangon High-Speed Railway forms a portion of the 1,215 km (755 mi) high-speed railway from Kunming to Rakhine State on the Bay of Bengal.[38] In late November 2010, Chinese state media reported that the railway would begin construction in about two months.[39] But in March 2011, the Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming stated that the project was delayed due to the first elections in Myanmar in 20 years and differences in the railway gauge of the two countries.[40] He explained the Chinese rail developers were waiting for the new cabinet in Myanmar to form and expressed hope that work on the line would begin before the end of 2011.[40]

On 18 July 2014, the Myanmar government cancelled the project, citing opposition from civil rights groups, villagers and the general public.[38]

In December 2013, the Myanmar government began to discuss the upgrade of the existing Yangon-Myitkyina Railway with the Asian Development Bank and the government of South Korea.[41]

In December 2013, Japanese media reported that the Myanmar and Japanese governments had reached an agreement to upgrade this line.[41]

In May 2012, the Railway Minister Aung Min of Myanmar announced that a feasibility study would be undertaken to rebuild the 105-km stretch of the Thai-Burma Railway from the Three Pagoda Pass to the Thai border.[42] The railway could be reopened, he said, with international assistance and promote development in the region and peace with ethnic Shan and Karen rebels in the border areas.[42]

Malaysia to Singapore section

From September 2010, the Malaysian and Singaporean governments have been discussing plans to build a high-speed rail line between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "High-speed Railway Delay". Radio Free Asia. 26 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Amornrat Mahitthirook, "High-speed train gets go ahead Two routes okayed in B741bn scheme" Bangkok Post 2014-07-30
  3. 1 2 3 4 Mahitthirook, Amornrat (2015-12-28). "Bangkok set to be China's rail hub". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  4. 1 2 "KL mulls Penang-Singapore high-speed rail link". The Malaysian Insisder. 21 September 2010. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Kunming-Singapore High-Speed Railway begins construction". People's Daily. 25 April 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  6. 1 2 3 "China coming down the tracks". The Economist. 20 January 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  7. 1 2 "SE-Asia railway idea revived". BBC. 4 November 2001. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  8. ↑ Kakizaki, Ichirō (2005), Laying the tracks: the Thai economy and its railways 1885-1935, Volume 10 of Kyoto area studies on Asia, Trans Pacific Press, p. 113, ISBN 1-920901-02-7
  9. ↑ Kakizaki 2005, p. 127
  10. ↑ "The Singapore-Kunming rail link project" (PDF). ASEAN. 26 September 2007. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  11. ↑ "Kunming Singapore railway". Philippine Daily Enquirer. 23 November 2000. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  12. ↑ "Asean signs historic deal with China". The Guardian. 29 November 2004. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  13. ↑ "Wen: China to speed up Pan-Asian rail link". China Daily. 15 January 2007. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  14. ↑ "Laos signs railway project to link with Vietnam". China Daily. 2012-11-06. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
  15. 1 2 "Laos Breaks Ground On Railway Project Linking Thailand to Vietnam". Radio Free Asia. 2014-01-03. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
  16. ↑ China Hospitality (April 26, 2011). "Kunming-Singapore high speed rail planned for 2020". Global Times. Retrieved 27 April 2011.
  17. ↑ "Train schedules for the main line between Singapore, Malaysia & Thailand...". Seat61. Retrieved 26 April 2011. It's up to you whether you travel from Singapore to Bangkok all in one go in 48 hours
  18. ↑ "Bangkok to Vientiane by train...". Seat61. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  19. ↑ "Work Begins on Kunming-Singapore High-Speed Rail Link". Voice of America. 25 April 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  20. 1 2 "Work begins on Kunming to Singapore high-speed railway". Eandt.theiet.org. 2011-05-16. Retrieved 2014-02-13.
  21. ↑ "Work begins on Kunming-Singapore rail link". Want China Times. 2011-04-25. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  22. 1 2 3 "Vientiane-China rail link now a priority project". Deutsche Presse-Agentur. 25 September 2013. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  23. 1 2 "Train plan upsets Lao villagers". TR Weekly (AFP). 11 April 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  24. ↑ "China's 120mph railway arriving in Laos China's mammoth engineering project to construct a railway from southwest China’s Yunnan Province all the way to Singapore is set to transform rural Laos". The Telegraph. 2014-01-14. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
  25. ↑ "Upheaval along the tracks for Laos villagers". AFP. 11 April 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  26. ↑ "China's EximBank Suspends Loans For Roads, Bridges in Laos" Radio Free Asia 2014-07-22
  27. ↑ "Xi Jinping Holds Talks with Choummaly Saygnasone, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) and President of Laos" PRC Foreign Ministry 2014-07-28
  28. ↑ "China Gives New Pledge on Lao Rail Project" RFA 2014-10-06
  29. ↑ Barrow, Keith (2015-11-13). "Chinese 'Alpine' high-speed train to enter service next month". International Railway Journal (IRJ). Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  30. 1 2 3 Reuters (2011-08-23). "Thailand revises high-speed rail plan, Laos link shelved". Reuters. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
  31. ↑ Nophakhun Limsamarnphun (2012-08-18). "High-speed rail network to link Asean countries". The Nation. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
  32. ↑ "China still has chance to be part of Thailand rail project". 2014-02-19. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  33. ↑ "Thai Senate passes $69.5B infrastructure bill". 2013-11-19. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  34. ↑ "Constitution Court Judge: High speed rail not necessary for Thailand". 2014-01-09. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  35. 1 2 "Dual-track trains to get China loan. Beijing to be repaid in Thai rice and rubber." Bangkok Post 2014-11-02
  36. 1 2 "NLA OKs Thai-China rail deal" Bangkok Post 2014-12-04
  37. ↑ Patsara Jikkham & Chatrudee Theparat, "Prayut, Li strike railway accord PM to visit China for inking of 4 more deals." Bangkok Post 2014-12-20
  38. 1 2 "Stalled $20bn Arno Maierbrugger, "Myanmar railway project a setback for Asia-Mideast trade" Gulf Times 2014-07-28
  39. ↑ "High-speed rail between Yunnan and Myanmar on agenda". People's Daily=2010-11-22. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
  40. 1 2 "中缅高铁被迫暂缓施工". Duowei News=2011-03-08. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
  41. 1 2 "Myanmar govt looking to upgrade Yangon-Myitkyina Rail railway". Thai PBS. 2013-12-12. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
  42. 1 2 "Burma to restore infamous Death Railway". ABC.net.au. 2012-05-21. Retrieved 2014-02-19.
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