Railway Bangkok-Thonburi-Sungai Kolok

Bangkok-Thonburi-Sungai Kolok
Entrance building of the original Bangkok Thonburi train station
Route length:	1144.3 km
Gauge :	1000 mm ( meter gauge )
Dual track :	48 km
Legend 0.0 Bangkok Thonburi 0.87 Thonburi until 2003: Bangkok Noi 1.54 Charan Sanitwong 4.29 Bang Ramat Connecting railway over the Rama VI Bridge 6.08 Taling Chan Junction 8.64 Ban Chimphli 11.47 Putthamonthon Sai 2 14.05 Sala Thammasop 19.06 Salaya 23.46 Wat Suwan 27.05 Khlong Maha Sawat 30.80 Wat Ngio Rai 34.05 Mae Nam Tha Chin (double bridge: 132 m / 160 m) 35.13 Nakhon Chaisi 40.02 Tha Chalaep 44.30 Sound Samrong 48.12 Nakhon Pathom 50.13 Phraratchawang Sanam Chan 55.36 Phrong Maduea 58.97 Khlong Bang Tan 64.19 Nong Pladuk Junction Nong Pladuk Junction – Malai Maen railway line 68.22 Ban pong Thailand-Burma Railway 73.69 Nakhon Chum 77.29 Khlong Ta Khot 81.80 Photharam 88.87 Chet Samian 94.64 Ban Kluai 100.14 Mae Klong (149.7 m) 100.29 Saphan Ratchaburi 101.31 Ratchaburi 105.46 Ban Khu Bua 111.20 Bo Takhro 114.50 Ban Pa Kai (opened 1957) 118.62 Pak Tho 121.00 Khao Lao 122.77 Huai Rong 127.18 Bang Khem 133.77 Khao Yoi 139.44 Nong Pla Lai 143.90 Bang Chak 150.49 Phetchaburi 154.00 Phra Ram Ratchaniwet (1921-1923) Has Chao Samran 158.18 Huai Suea 160.32 Khao Thamon 161.85 Khlong Mueang Council 164.21 Nong Mai Lueang 169.90 Nong Chok 175.40 Nong Sala 182.55 Nong Ta Phot 187.06 Ban Cha-am 193.00 Bo Khaem 197.86 Huai Sai Nuea 201.64 Huai Sai Tai 207.10 Bo Fai 212.99 Hua Hin 216.96 Nong Kae 221.03 Suan Son Pradiphat 225.04 Khao Tao 232.92 Wang Phong 235.85 Pran Buri 241.89 Huai Khwang 246.94 Nong Khan 254.99 Sam Roi Yot 261.15 Sang Kathai 271.33 Kui Buri 278.50 Bo Nok 288.88 Thung Mamao 294.76 Khan Kradai 302.33 Prachuap Khiri Khan 310.37 Nong Hin 313.42 Wa Ko 318.22 Wang Duan 329.07 Huai Yang 338.60 Thung Pradu 342.06 Thap Sakae 347.00 Don Sai 353.04 Khok Tahom 360.53 Ban Krut 365.85 Nong Mongkhon 371.04 Well Phakkhuang 376.52 Bang Saphan Yai 383.58 Hin Kong 385.92 Cha Muang 392.66 Bang Saphan Noi 399.92 Huai Sak 404.30 Ban Sai Thong 409.65 Khao Chaiyarat 420.59 Map Ammarit 427.66 Ban Sap Sombun 434.29 Khlong Wang Chang 439.34 Pathio 447.46 Ban Khok Ma 453.80 Saphli 458.38 Nong Nian 463.20 Na Cha-ang 468.53 Chumphon Chumphon – Khao Fachi railway line 472.54 Saeng Daet 480.91 Thung Kha 489.97 Wisai 495.75 Ban Khron 500.76 Sawi 508.51 Khao Suan Thurian 512.03 Khao Pip 516.81 Pak Tako 522.35 Tha thong 526.08 Khuan Hin Mui 532.66 Mae Nam Lang Suan (135 m) 533.30 Lang Suan 538.10 Khan Wo 541.03 Khlong Khanan 546.53 Hua Mat 553.70 Lamae 560.14 Ban Duat 566.37 Khan Thuli 570.05 Don Thup 577.78 Tha Chana 584.06 Ban Ko Muk 588.40 Khao Phanom Baek 597.71 Chaiya 607.47 Bang Nam Chuet 610.53 Tha Chang 614.00 Khlong Khut 618.87 Khlong Sai 623.92 Ma Luan 625.90 Ban Hua Toei 627.46 Ban Don Ri Ban Thung Pho Junction – Khiri Ratthanikhom railway line 631.00 Ban Thung Pho Junction 633.66 Mae Nam Tapi (Chulachomklao Bridge, 200 m) 635.02 Surat Thani 641.51 Khao Hua Khwai Bo Krang 652.46 Khao Phlu 657.76 Khlong Ya (since 1957) 662.34 Ban Na 669.68 Huai courage 672.89 Khlong Chawang (150 m) 673.70 Well San 679.90 Khlong Prap 684.03 Phru Phi 687.72 Khlong Sun 692.73 Ba song 699.78 Ban Phru Krachaeng (since 1958) 704.61 Huai Prik 709.87 Krabiat 716.66 Than Pho 721.62 Mae Nam Tapi (150 m) 722.41 Chawang 727.95 Khlong Chan Di 734.71 Lak Chang 738.98 Khlong Kui 743.01 Well bon 747.03 Khlong Chan 751.03 Ban Ko Pring 757.08 Thung Song Junction Thung Song Junction – Kantang railway line 762.00 Sai Yai 767.78 Chong Khao 99 m 769.82 Chong Khao Tunnel (235 m) 770.06 776.33 Ron Phibun 781.01 Khao Chum Thong Junction 786.15 Ban Koei Chen 790.59 Ban Thung Lo 794.67 Khok Khram 798.72 Ban Huai Yung 803.40 Ban Tha Chang 806.35 Wang Wua 810.88 Mamuang song sound 816.02 Nakhon Si Thammarat 789.38 Khuan Nong Khwa 794.94 Ban do 800.63 Ban Thung Kai 806.06 Chat uat 810.69 Nong Chik 813.47 Ban Nang Long 816.35 Ban Trok Khae 818.95 Ban Khon Hat (since 1957) 824.06 Laem Tanot 828.03 Ban Sunthara (since 1985) 833.11 Pak Khlong 837.05 Ban Makok Tai 839.97 Chaiburi 846.01 Phatthalung 849.07 Well Prue 853.19 Ban Khai Thai 856.28 Ban Ton Don 859.25 Ban Huai Taen 865.01 Khao Chaison 870.17 Bang Kaeo 876.50 Khuan Phra (since 1958) 881.15 Khuan Khiam 885.35 Han Kong 888.68 Han Thao 893.50 Wat Khuan Phayoe 896.24 Khok Sai 902.97 Khuan Niang 909.50 Ban Ko Yai 917.02 Bang Klam 921.84 Ban Din Lan 925.80 U-Taphao Junction until 1922; Abandoned in 1986 929.13 Talat Hat Yai 932.05 Khlong Hae 934.61 Khlong Ple 936.15 Ban Ko Mi 936.92 Khao Bandai Nang 939.20 Talat Nam Noi 939.83 Nam Noi 942.23 Bank long Na 944.45 Khuan Hin 945.19 Talat Phawong 948.53 Nam Krachai 950.81 Ban Bang Dan 956.68 Wat Uthai 958.04 Songkhla 926.09 Khlong U-Taphao 928.58 Hat Yai Junction 1922-1978 934.68 Ban phru 945.15 Sala Thung Lung 952.64 Khlong Ngae 961.14 Khlong Ram 967.79 Ban Tha Khoi 973.32 Khet Daen 973.56 Border Thailand / Malaysia 973.84 Padang Besar Khlong Rien 935.00 Khuan Chong 940.26 Well mom 953.75 Wat Khuan Mit 960.00 Khuan Pa Ching 964.50 Chana 972.10 Tha Maenglak 980.79 Ko Saba 991.99 Thepha 992.68 Mae Nam Thepha (140 m) 999.91 Ta paet 1003.27 Ban Nikhom (since 1982) 1009.21 Pattani 1016.73 Well Pradu 1020.09 Wat Chang Hai 1021.29 Pa Rai 1026.07 Khlong Sai 1031.59 Ta Sae 1034.88 Ban Yu Po 1038.00 Mae Nam Pattani (195 m) 1038.74 Yala 1048.80 Mai Kaen 1051.95 Ban Pa Tae (since 1958) 1056.82 Raman 1061.70 Ba Lo 1065.12 Mae Nam Saiburi (230 m) 1071.19 Rueso 1075.98 Ban Salo Bukit Yuaerae 1081.77 La Lo 1089.46 Ma Rue Bo 1093.96 Kadae 1099.50 Tanyong Mat 1105.45 Pa Phai 1111.15 Cho Ai Rong 1115.83 Bukit 1119.62 Ai Satia 1125.65 To Deng 1130.10 Sungai Padi 1137.14 Khok Saya 1142.99 Su-ngai Kolok ( Amphoe Su-ngai Kolok ) 1144.29 Mae Nam Su-ngai Kolok (125.6 m) Malaysia

The railway line Bangkok-Thonburi-Sungai Kolok ( "Southern Railway" ) connects Bangkok with the Malay Peninsula and thus establishes the connection to the Malaysian State Railway (KTM). The southern runway is operated by the Thai State Railways.

prehistory

In 1894, the Danish engineer Aage Westenholz (1859-1935), uncle of the writer Karen Blixen , received a concession to build a line from Bangkok to Phetchaburi . As with other, similar railroad construction projects in Thailand at the time, the start of construction failed due to the difficulty of raising sufficient capital for the project. When, due to this situation, the Thai state decided in 1898 to let the state itself build the main connections in the country, it bought back the concession. Other requests for concessions made by contractors for railway lines in the Thai part of the Malay Peninsula were all denied.

construction

first section

Railway platform scene in Hua Hin

After the Thai state bought back the Westenholz concession, the Royal Railway Department (RRD) in the Ministry of Public Works under Karl Bethge planned the route to Phetchaburi. Construction began in April 1900. In contrast to the remaining Thai railway network in standard gauge was built, the state railway chose here the meter gauge to a later seamless transition to the meter-gauge railways also in Burma and Malaya easier. This was all the easier as the southern runway was initially unable to get a rail connection to the rest of the network, as there was not yet a bridge over the Mae Nam Chao Phraya . The line therefore did not start from Bangkok's Hua Lamphong main train station , but received its own terminus in Thonburi , Thonburi station . Its reception building was designed in the style of brick expressionism by the German architect Karl Döhring .

British influence

Signal box of the Hua Hin train station

The extension of the line beyond Phetchaburi was initially not possible after an uprising in the north of the country gave top priority to the construction of the northern railway and all resources were concentrated on it. So private investors came back into play, trying to get concessions to extend the route to the south. Among the applicants was also the teak entrepreneur Louis Leonowens , son of Anna Leonowens (“ The King and I ”). After previous experiences, Thailand insisted on state railway construction and tried to get a loan for the southern railway in Europe. As the German Empire got closer to this idea, Great Britain accelerated its negotiations with Thailand. It strove to rule southern Thailand - at least economically - and was afraid of German influence on this railway line. This led to two treaties between Great Britain and Thailand, both signed on March 10, 1909. One regulated constitutional issues, the second the construction of the southern runway. With this second contract, the UK committed a £ 4m loan for the project. To eliminate any German influence, a second Thai state railway administration was founded under the British Henry Gittens (it was called from 1913: "Southern RRD") because the existing RRD was headed by the German Karl Bethge. The latter was called from 1912 "Northern RRD".

completion

Because of the length of the route, construction was pushed forward simultaneously from three locations: from Phetchaburi to the south, from Songkhla port on the east coast and from Kantang port on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula.

→ Main article : Thung Song Junction – Kantang railway line

As a result, sections that were ready for operation were put into operation, e.g. B .:

• 1911: Phetchaburi - Hua Hin in two stages,
• 1913: Kantang - Huai Yot
• January 1, 1914: Kantang - Thung Song Junction
• January 1, 1914: Songkhla - Phatthalung
• January 1, 1914: Hua Hin– Wang Phong
• October 1, 1914: The sections advanced by Kantang and Songkhla are merged.
• October 1, 1916: The southern and northern tunneling meet at Chumphon , and continuous operations are opened.

Hat Yai reception building

The Northern RRD had to cede the meter-gauge line from Bangkok-Thonburi to Phetchaburi, which had already been built under their leadership, to the southern state railway. This was not only technically sensible, because there was such a uniform administration for each of the two gauges operated by the state , but also a political balancing act of Thailand, which was initially neutral until 1917 during the First World War : the northern RRD worked under the German director Karl Bethgen , which southern under the British Henry Gittens , whose countries of origin were now enemies of the war.

After Thailand entered the war on the British and French sides on July 22, 1917, the connection of the Malay with the Thai railway network was given high priority. Initially, it was planned to establish the connection via the route following the east coast of Malaysia. The construction of the line in Malaysia was slow. So the administrations decided to establish a connection with the Malay Western Railway. This was put into operation in 1918. The route over the eastern border crossing Sungai Kolok could not go into operation until November 1, 1921.

business

Surat Thani train station

On April 1, 1903, traffic on the first completed section between Bangkok-Thonburi and Phetchaburi was started with provisional rolling stock: the delivery of a considerable part of the vehicles had been delayed. Only when these had arrived was the official opening on June 19, 1903 by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V). Further sections followed successively from 1911 until July 1, 1918, traffic to Malaysia via Padang Besar was started - initially with two Trains per week that ran with a travel time of 60 hours. An official opening ceremony did not take place - due to the war. In 1922 night traffic and sleeping cars were introduced. Until then, long-distance journeys were interrupted for overnight stays. The RSR maintained hotels at large train stations for this purpose. The travel time from Bangkok to Penang was reduced to just over 30 hours.

The Thonburi station was in an air raid in the Second World War destroyed the 1945th After the war, Field Marshal Phibul Songkhram had the reception building rebuilt in the original style. In 2003, the terminus of the line was moved west to the previous Bangkok Noi station in order to be able to use the vacated railway area for the expansion of the Siriraj Hospital. Bangkok Noi has been renamed Thon Buri Station . The former station building has not been used since then. It is to be included in the expansion of the hospital.

Also in 2003 the line to Nakhon Pathom was double- tracked.

Some train stations or stops along the route in the south of the country have been closed for security reasons following the recommendation of the military. This is where separatists from the Muslim - Malay south and the Thai military fight each other . There have been repeated attacks on the southern runway.

Branch lines

Thung Song Railway Station

The branch line to Songkhla is 29 km long and was opened on January 1, 1914. The branch station was initially U-Taphao Junction (km 925.80). The location of the branch station was chosen unfavorably: It was in the floodplain of the Khlong U-Taphao . For this reason, the branch to the newly built Hat Yai Junction station (km 928.58) was moved in 1922 . The branch line was closed on July 1, 1978.

The branch line from Khao Chum Thong Junction (781.01 km) to Nakhon Si Thammarat is 35 km long. It opened on October 1, 1914.

particularities

Hua Hin Railway Station: Royal Pavilion

South of Phetchaburi there was an approximately 12 km long " siding " to the beach of Hat Chao Samran , which was used exclusively to enable King Vajiravudh (Rama VI.) And his court to travel directly to the summer palace there by special train from 1921 to 1923 . The branch station for this connection was called Phra Ram Ratchaniwet and, like the track to Hat Chao Samran, was abandoned when the king stopped going there in the summer.

Hua Hin Railway Station has a separate pavilion as a reception building for the king , which was built around 1920.

project

The double-track expansion of the southern runway is to be continued as far as Surat Thani .

traffic

A number of long-distance connections to and from Bangkok are offered on the southern runway, but not all of them cover the entire length of the route. As a rule, long-distance traffic via the southern railway in Bangkok only uses the Hua Lamphong station . The following are offered daily:

• 10 pairs of trains to Surat Thani . These include two DRC express trains , one of which is a night connection. These trains continue to run
  • 5 pairs of trains to Hat Yai , including the DRC night express train. These trains continue to run
    • 2 pairs of trains to Sungai Kolok and the
    • International train to Butterworth . In fact, these are two air-conditioned 2nd class sleeping cars that will be removed as through cars from the train that otherwise ends in Hat Yai and will cross the border.
  • 2 pairs of trains to Trang .

The Eastern and Oriental Express luxury train also runs the route.

literature

• BR Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand, Laos and Cambodia . White Lotus Co Ltd, Bangkok 2010, ISBN 978-974-480-157-9

Web links

• The Songkhla to Hat Yai Rail Line , photo report from 2004 about the disused branch line from Hat Yai to Songkhla (English); Retrieved April 21, 2014.

Remarks

1. ↑ Longest branch.
2. ^ Highest station on the Südbahn.
3. ↑ Fourth longest railway tunnel in Thailand
4. ↑ In a comparable political situation, German loans had secured the financing of the Ottoman Empire for the Anatolian Railway , the Baghdad Railway and the Hejaz Railway .
5. ↑ January 1, 1914 was the 33rd birthday of King Vajiravudh (Rama VI.)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Information from Whyte: The Railway Atlas , pp. 46–52, 55; Cards 9, 14-21.
2. ↑ ^{a b c d} Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand '', p. 45.
3. ^ ^{A b} Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand '', p. 40.
4. ↑ See Whyte: Railway Atlas , pp. 2, 12.
5. ↑ ^{a b c} Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand '', p. 42.
6. ^ Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand '', p. 41.
7. ^ Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand , pp. 40, 45.
8. ^ ^{A b} Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand , p. 55.
9. ↑ Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand , gives different times for this: p. 3: 31½ hours; P. 55: 36 hours.
10. ↑ ^{a b c d} Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand , p. 43.
11. ^ Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand , p. 54.
12. ^ Whyte: The Railway Atlas of Thailand , pp. 53f.
13. ↑ Information from: The Man in Seat 61: Train Travel in Thailand .