Rail transport in Bangkok

Rail transport was introduced to Bangkok in 1893, and the national railway network was developed during the 20th century. Rapid transit in Bangkok includes several rail lines: the BTS Skytrain, MRT and Airport Rail Link.

Hua Lamphong Railway Station

History

Bangkok's first rail line was the private Paknam Railway linking Bangkok to Samut Prakan which opened in 1893. The national railway network was subsequently developed and first opened in 1896, linking Bangkok to Nakhon Ratchasima and then expanding to reach Chiang Mai, Nong Khai, Ubon Ratchathani and Su-ngai Kolok.

Electric trams served the city from 1894 to 1968. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, King Rama V eagerly built a tram network for Bangkok by employing foreign engineers and technicians, especially Danish engineers. However, due to a lack of interest and maintenance, the tram network was completely scrapped in 1968.

Although proposals for the development of rapid transit in Bangkok had been made since 1975,[1] leading to plans for the failed Lavalin Skytrain, it was only in 1999 that Thailand's first rapid transit system, the BTS Skytrain, began operation.

The underground MRT subsequently opened in 2004, and the Airport Rail Link began operation in 2010.

State Railway of Thailand (SRT) for Inter-city and commuter rail

Commuter rail at Hua Lamphong Railway Station

Main articles: Greater Bangkok Commuter rail and SRT Red Lines

Bangkok is the location of Hua Lamphong Railway Station, the main terminus of the national rail network operated by the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). Trains travelling on the Northern Line to Chiang Mai, the Northeastern Line to Nong Khai and Ubon Ratchathani, and the Eastern Line to Aranyaprathet originate at the station, and so do some trains of the Southern Line, which terminates at Su-ngai Kolok and has a connection to Malaysia (the other Southern terminus is Thonburi). In addition to long-distance services, the SRT also operates a few daily commuter trains running from and to the outskirts of the city during the rush hour, but passenger numbers have remained low.

Mass Rapid transit (Metro Train System) in Bangkok

Main article: Mass Rapid Transit Master Plan in Bangkok Metropolitan Region

Bangkok is currently served by three rapid transit systems: the elevated BTS Skytrain, the underground and elevated MRT and the elevated Airport Rail Link.

Metro System		Began operation	Lines in operation	Lengths in operation	Stations in operation	Operators
	BTS Skytrain	1999	2	53 km (33 mi) (outdated)	52	BTSC under concession from BMA
	MRT	2004	2	60 km (37 mi) (outdated)	53	BEM under concession from MRTA
ARL	Airport Rail Link	2010	1	29 km (18 mi)	8	SRT
Total				142 km

Map of current & future Bangkok Mass Rapid network as of December 2019 Note: SRT Red lines will not open until early 2021

BTS Skytrain

BTS Skytrain

Main article: BTS Skytrain

The Skytrain consists of two lines, totalling 53.49 kilometres (33.24 mi): Sukhumvit Line running southwards from Wat Phra Sri Mahathat Station along Phahon Yothin Road and then eastwards along Sukhumvit Road to Kheha Station in Samut Prakan. The Silom Line runs eastwards from National Stadium Station in Pathum Wan District, then southwest along Ratchadamri, Si Lom, Narathiwat Ratchanakharin and Sathon Roads, crossing the Chao Phraya passing Wong Wian Yai Station in Khlong San towards Bang Wa Station in Phasi Charoen District. Both lines are elevated, and interchange at Siam Station in Pathum Wan.

MRT (Metro)

MRT Purple Line

Main article: MRT (Bangkok)

The underground MRT system opened in July 2004, and currently consists of two lines, the Blue Line and Purple Line. The Blue Line runs for 37.1 kilometres (23.1 mi) from Tao Poon Station in a southward arc through the east along Ratchadaphisek Road, via Hua Lamphong, where it connects to the central railway station, to Lak Song. It has 38 stations, and connects to the BTS system at BTS stations Mo Chit, Asok, Sala Daeng and Bang Wa. The Blue Line was extended to form a circle in 2020. The Purple Line opened in 2016.

Although initial passenger numbers were low and their service area remains limited to the inner city, these systems have become indispensable to many commuters. The BTS reported an average of 392,167 daily trips in 2010, while the MRT had 178,334 passenger trips per day. However, relatively high fare prices have kept these systems inaccessible to a portion of the population.

Airport Rail Link

Main article: Airport Rail Link (Bangkok)

The Airport Rail Link, opened in August 2010 after many delays, connects the city centre to Suvarnabhumi Airport in Samut Prakan Province to the east. It is operated by the SRT, and offers services between the airport and Makkasan where it connects with Phetchaburi Station of the MRT. It terminates at Phaya Thai Station, where it connects to the BTS. Its eight stations span a distance of 29 kilometres (18 mi).

Lines in operation

Line	System	Stations	Length	Terminus	Daily ridership	Began operation
						Initial part	Last extension
BTS  Sukhumvit Line	BTS Skytrain	40	43 km (27 mi)	Wat Phra Sri Mahathat ↔ Kheha	combined 900,000[2]	1999	2020
BTS  Silom Line		13	15 km (9.3 mi)	National Stadium ↔ Bang Wa			2013
MRT  Blue Line	Metropolitan Rapid Transit (MRT)	38	48 km (30 mi)	Lak Song ↔ Tao Poon	400,000[3]	2004	2019
MRT  Purple Line		16	23 km (14 mi)	Khlong Bang Phai ↔ Tao Poon	50,000[4]	2016	-
ARL  Airport Rail Link	Airport Rail Link	8	29 km (18 mi)	Phaya Thai ↔ Suvarnabhumi	65,000	2010	-
Total			158 km (98 mi)

Future expansion

Main article: Mass Rapid Transit Master Plan in Bangkok Metropolitan Region

See also: BTS Skytrain § Future extension plans, and MRT (Bangkok) § Expansion_plans

The entire Mass Rapid Transit Master Plan in Bangkok Metropolitan Region consists of eight main lines and four feeder lines totalling 508 kilometres (316 mi) to be completed by 2029.

Extensions to the Sukhumvit Line to the east and north, and the MRT Blue Line are currently under construction. All are due for completion between 2018 and 2020. New lines under construction are the SRT Dark Red grade-separated commuter rail line to Rangsit, the MRT Orange Line and two MRT monorail lines - the MRT Pink Line and the MRT Yellow Line - which both commenced construction in 2017.

Rolling stock

Line	Class	Manufacturers	Manufactured in
Sukhumvit Line    Silom Line	Siemens Modular Metro	Siemens Mobility	Austria  Germany
	Siemens Inspiro		Turkey
	CNR Changchun	Changchun Railway Vehicles	China
	CRRC Changchun
Blue Line	Siemens Modular Metro	Siemens Mobility	Austria
	Siemens Inspiro		Turkey
Airport Rail Link	Siemens Desiro Class 360/2	Siemens Mobility	Germany
Purple Line	J-TREC Sustina S24	Japan Transport Engineering Company	Japan
Red Lines	Hitachi AT-100 Metro	Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Pink Line    Yellow Line	Bombardier Innovia Monorail 300	Bombardier Transportation CRRC Nanjing Puzhen	China
Gold Line	Bombardier Innovia APM 300

Ticketing and fare rates

MRT Blue line

There are many types of stored value cards separated by passengers’ age. Elder card is for over 65 years olds and provides 50% discount from the full fare. Student card is for under 23 years olds and provides 10% discount from the full fare. Child card is for under 14 years olds and under 120 cm tall and provides 50% discount from the full fare. Adult card is for everyone doesn't provide any discount from the full fare.

The fare rates are counted by the number of stations, starting from 16 Baht for a station, increasing by 2-3 Baht for each station up to 42 Baht for 17 stations.[5]

MRT Purple line

Use the stored value cards as MRT blue line. The fare rates start from 15 Baht for a station, increasing 1 Baht for each station up to 29 Baht for 15 stations.[6]

For the passengers that don't have cards, the fare rates start from 17 Baht for a station, increasing 2-3 Baht for each station, then reach the maximum values at 42 Baht for 11 stations.[7]

Airport Rail Link

For the city line, the fare rates start from 15 Baht for a station, increase 5 Baht for each station up to 45 Baht for 7 stations.[8]

BTS

BTS has its own stored value cards called “Rabbit card”. There are 3 types of Rabbit card: adult, student, and senior, with 100 Baht initial stored value.[9]

BTS fare rates start from 16 Baht. The costs is based on the distance travelled. Travelling between Wongwian Yai - Bang Wa stations, On-Nut - Bearing stations will cost you 15 Baht. If you are travelling between these stations to the other station on the main line, 15 baht will be added to your fares. There are now currently free access station which will not cost you any money. Between Kasetsart University - Mo Chit stations, and Bearing - Kheha stations.

See also

• Rail transport in Thailand
• Rapid transit in Thailand

References

1. Rujopakarn, Wiroj (October 2003). "Bangkok transport system development: what went wrong?". Journal of the Eastern Asia Society for Transportation Studies. 5: 3302–15.
2. ฐานเศรษฐกิจ (17 May 2016). "BTSเทหมื่นล้านซื้อรถไฟฟ้าล็อตใหญ่ ชี้ผู้โดยสารทะลุ9แสนเที่ยวคน/วัน". thansettakij.com. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
3. "ส.ค.เชื่อมแน่รถไฟฟ้าฟันหลอ "เตาปูน-บางซื่อ" รฟม.แนะวิธีใช้บริการ".
4. "Purple Line use up 47% since 'missing link' completed". Bangkok Post. Bangkok. 8 September 2017.
5. "Bangkok Expressway and Metro Public Company Limited". www.bangkokmetro.co.th. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
6. "Bangkok Expressway and Metro Public Company Limited". www.bangkokmetro.co.th. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
7. "เอาตารางราคา ค่าโดยสารรถไฟฟ้าสายสีม่วงมาให้ดูครับ (จากแผ่นพับ)". Pantip (in Thai). Retrieved 2017-05-04.
8. Rotfaithai.Com. "Rotfaithai.Com Forums-viewtopic-แอร์พอร์ต เรล ลิงค์เตรียมให้บริการระบบเช็คอินและขนส่งสัมภาระแล้ว". portal.rotfaithai.com. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
9. "About Rabbit Card". Rabbit. Retrieved 2017-05-04.

External links