Southeast Asia Railways News (April 2025)

A review of the bamboo railways in Battambang, Malaysia's East Coast Rail Line (ECRL) update, more delays for Bangkok-Nong Khai HSR, and dreaming of a Central Highlands Railway in Vietnam

Author

James Clark
April 03, 2025

Welcome to the April edition of the Southeast Asia Railways Newsletter.

I was in Vietnam in March and I took the train from Binh Thuan to Nha Trang, and from Danang to Hue. There is a gap between Nha Trang and Danang because I went inland to the Central Highlands.

There is no railway in the Central Highlands, but there have been several plans over the years to build railways. I made a map of the proposed Central Highlands Railways a few years ago, but sadly none of these proposals have been considered since.

In the news, I wrote about my experience with the bamboo railway in Cambodia, and I wrote for Lonely Planet about train travel in Vietnam.

News

🇧🇳Brunei

🇰🇭 Cambodia

A guide for the original bamboo railway in Battambang and the new bamboo tourist train in Banon.

🇮🇩 Indonesia

🇱🇦 Laos

"The China-Laos Railway has safely handled over 50 million passenger trips since its launch on Dec 3, 2021, according to the railway operator."

🇲🇾 Malaysia

"The East Coast Rail Line (ECRL) project, a 65-kilometer rail network traversing Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, and Selangor, has achieved 79.95 per cent overall progress as of February."

“Traversing stunning mountain regions and dense rainforests, train enthusiast Francis Bourgeois arrives in the buzzing Malaysian capital city Kuala Lumpur, where he spends an unforgettable day spotting freight trains.“

🇵🇭 Philippines

• PNR confirms progress on South Long Haul project [Philippine Information Agency]

"Philippine National Railways (PNR) General Manager Engr. Deovanni S. Miranda assured that the South Long Haul Project remains on track, with right-of-way and site acquisitions already underway."

"The SCRP is part of the larger 54.6-kilometer North South Commuter Railway (NSCR) Project that runs from Clark, Pampanga to Calamba, Laguna. Once constructed, the modern suburban railway line will significantly cut the travel time from Clark to Calamba by 50 percent."

🇹🇭 Thailand

"State railway says expropriation dispute delayed handover of land to contractor."

"The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) will deploy 20 second-hand Japanese KiHa diesel trains for suburban passenger services."

"The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) has launched a new tourism promotion campaign titled “SRT Passport”, aiming to encourage travellers to visit 162 important and iconic railway stations nationwide."

🇻🇳 Vietnam

I wrote my first article for Lonely Planet, so it was appropriate that it was about train travel in Vietnam.

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