On December 4, the official Thai government website an­nounced that it had approved the environmental impact assessment (EIA) for the first phase of Thai­land-China Railway.

On its website, the department responsible for EIAs, under the auspices of the Thai Ministry of Natural Resources and Environ­ment, announced that the Thai National Board of the Environment approved the first phase EIA for the Phachi-Khorat section of the rail­way November 30.

An initial first phase EIA was approved earlier. To date, the EIA of the first phase of the Thai­land-China railway is finally ap­proved by the Thai government.

During a December 4 press conference at the Thai Ministry of Transport, Transport Minister Ark­hom Termpittayapaisith said that the project is expected to begin con­struction in late December. On No­vember 24, during the 22nd meeting of the Joint Committee on Railway Cooperation between Thailand and China, Arkhom Termpittayapaisith revealed that Thailand and China have already started talks on the second phase of the project and its connection to the China-Laos Rail­way.

The Thailand-China Railway will be the first standard gauge high-speed railway in Thailand. The first phase of the project will run for 253 kilometres and have a top design speed of 250 kilometres per hour. The second phase of the project will extend to NongKhai, which is separated from the Lao capital Vientiane by a river. It will then connect to the Boten-Vientiane section of the China-Laos Railway. The project will further enhance Thailand’s position as a transporta­tion hub on the Indochina Peninsu­la, injecting new momentum into Thailand’s economic development. It will benefit all countries along the route. (Xinhua)

 Further reading:

Yuxi-Mohan Railway

The Yuxi-Mohan Railway is the Chinese section of the middle route of the Pan-Asian Railway. It will extend for 507 kilometres in Yunnan province between Yuxi and the port of Mohan on the Chi­na-Laos border. Construction of this railroad begins in April 2016. Upon completion of the project, it will take only 3.7 hours to travel by train from Kunming to Xishuang­banna where Mohan is located.

Dali-Ruili Railway

 The Dali-Ruili Railway is an important part of the China-Myan­mar international railway channel, and the western route of the Pan-Asian Railway. It extends for about 330 kilometres across Yunnan province between Dali in the east and Ruili in the west. It is expected to be completed in 2022. When it goes into operation, a train journey between Dali and Ruili will be shortened to about three hours.