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Laos
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Thai-Lao train service launched

The first railway line connecting Thailand and Laos was officially opened on Thursday, aiming to boost tourism and trade.
**Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn presided over the opening ceremony of the 3.5km track connecting Nong Khai Province and Thanaleng station in Laos. **

**After the ceremony, she boarded a Laos-bound service across the Mekong river as the first passenger. **

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Lao Deputy Prime Minister Boonyoung Worlajit also attended the ceremony.

State Railway of Thailand (SRT) governor Yutthana Thapcharoen said about 500 passengers were expected to use the train each day once it begins regular passenger services.

The train will make four round trips a day over the Mekong river. A third-class ticket will cost 20 baht and second-class 80 baht, he said.

If citizens from either country do not have a passport to present for a visa, they will be able to ask checkpoint officials for a temporary border pass, he said.

The SRT and Laos have agreed to extend the rail service from Thanaleng to Vientiane, 25km away, in the near future, the governor added.

**The railway was financed by Thailand with total funding of 197 million baht (about US$5.4 million). **

**The second phase is expected to cost about one million baht. **

Laos imports consumer products and construction materials from Thailand while it exports agricultural products and timber to Thailand.

**Bron: BangkokPost. **

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Passengers for Thai - Laos train service have to wait

By The Nation

**Thailand and Laos officially opened a historic rail link across the Mekong River Thursday, but travellers will have to wait some time yet before they can use it. **

Her Royal Highness Maha Chakri Sirindhorn rang the bell for the opening ceremony of the first train at 9am at Nong Khai station, before her royal departure on the train to Laos’s Tha Nalaeng station.

A date for the start of the train service between Laos and Thailand is still to be set, despite the two countries having completed construction of the "Friendship Railway’ almost a year ago, a Lao official said.

Thailand sponsored the Bt197 million 3.5 kilometre railway to Laos as a gesture to the land-locked neighbour, to encourage construction of a national rail network as part of a functional transportation system.

The rail line ends shortly after crossing the Mekong at Dongphosy village, 25 km from the capital city of Vientiane.

Lao officials said although the official opening of the railway had taken place this week, they were still unable to confirm an exact date for the train service between Laos and Thailand.

“We expect to launch the service soon after the ceremony but we don’t yet know when,” said a senior official to the Vientiane Times.

Officials of the two countries have yet to agree on a number of details for the train service. Thailand, for example, has not opened an international checkpoint at Nong Khai station as Parliament has yet to approve it. Thailand said it also needed more time to complete construction of immigration facilities at the station.

Meanwhile, although Lao officials claim they are ready to open the rail service, Laos has no trains. The** State Railway of Thailand **(SRT) will unilaterally operate a train for four round trips a day, for fares of Bt 50 or 12,000 kip per passenger.

The SRT expected to earn at least Bt10 million annually from the service, an official said.

Lao officials are being trained by the SRT for rail and station operations on the Lao side.

The railway across the Mekong River to Laos is too short at present to provide a service for goods and passengers, but Laos is preparing to extend another section to connect with the capital city.

Laos plans eventually to have a nationwide railway network to include Luang Prabang and connect with the Singapore-Kunming railway under the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) development scheme.

Bron: The Nation