Cambodia plans to develop high-speed railway
Prime Minister Hun Sen said Cambodia is considering developing high-speed rail to replace trains running at 20-30 km/h.
“We are looking for development partners to build high-speed rail on existing lines”, Prime Minister Cambodia Hun Sen said today, while attending the inauguration ceremony of 38 roads in Siem Reap city.
Prime Minister Hun Sen said Cambodia has two railway lines, but both are outdated and trains can only run at a speed of 20-30 km/h, so the country needs to consider modernization.
Grandfather Hun Sen directed the Ministry of Transport and Public Works to fulfill the requirements of developing a high-speed railway system, in order to promote rail transport in Cambodia. However, he did not provide further information on the value of the project nor the development partner.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen speaks during the inauguration ceremony of 38 roads in Siem Reap on April 4. Photo: AKP.
The Cambodian railway system has been severely damaged since the 1970s. The Cambodian government restored a railway line connecting the capital Phnom Penh with the southern provinces in 2016 and a second line connecting the northern region in late 2018.
Laos, Cambodia’s northern neighbor, in December 2021 grand opening 414 km long high-speed rail link with China. It is part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which aims to connect Kunming to Bangkok and the Thai port of Laem Chabang, and then to Singapore on the 5,500-kilometer Trans-Asian Railway.
The Laos – China railway started construction in 2016, and was operated by the National Railway Corporation China (CNRG) construction and completion after 5 years, with a contract value of about 5.8 billion USD. Lao officials say they hope the railway will turn a profit after 23 years operate.
Nguyen Tien (According to Khmer Times)
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