SAMUT SAKHON – State Railway of Thailand (SRT) has prepared to resume its Mae Klong-Baan Laem rail route this April 1 after shutting down the track for improvements.
Following repairs to 33.57 kilometers of the route that connects Samut Sakhon province to Samut Songkhram province, which began in May of last year, the SRT says it is now ready to once again offer the Mae Klong-Baan Laem service starting on April 1. The stretch is particularly popular among tourists as it passes by the Rom Hoob, or closed umbrella, market, which became an attraction due to its vendors setting up next to the tracks and having to shut their umbrellas each time a train passes.
Upgrades to the rail route cost 432.6 million baht and included the installation of larger tracks and the replacement of wooden railroad sleepers with concrete slabs to allow for trains to travel at higher speeds.
The route will run 4 times a day, leaving from Mae Klong at 6.20AM, 9AM, 11.30AM and 3.30PM. It passes a total 12 stops before its destination at Baan Laem.
