The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) is set to finalize a contract for the construction of a 13.3km rail track in Ayutthaya province, as part of the expansive Sino-Thai rail project extending from Bangkok to Nong Khai.
SRT Governor Nirut Maneephan announced that the contract, worth 10.3 billion baht, will be signed with Boonchai Panich (1979) Co Ltd this month.
This new section, the Ban Pho-Phra Kaeo stretch, is a critical component of the larger project. The SRT is currently waiting for a draft contract from the Office of the Attorney-General (OAG) to commence construction. A Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) for the elevated rail track at the Ayutthaya station has also been submitted for approval to UNESCO and various agencies, given its proximity to historic sites.
The project also involves negotiations over the Bang Sue-Don Mueang section due to a route overlap with the Don Mueang–Suvarnabhumi–U-Tapao high-speed railway. Resolutions for this issue are expected by the year’s end, potentially leading the SRT to manage the construction contract directly to avoid delays.
The first phase of the Thai-Chinese high-speed line, the Bang Sue-Don Mueang section, is scheduled to be operational by 2028. The entire Thai-Chinese high-speed train project, spanning 606 km across eight provinces, has a total budget of 179 billion baht and includes two phases: Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima and Nakhon Ratchasima-Nong Khai. (NNT)
