Communication: "I want the China-Thailand Railway to take me to China" - the China-Thailand Railway carries the development expectations of the Thai people

Source: Xinhua Net

Bangkok, 9 Feb (Xinhua) -- "I want the China-Thailand Railway to take me to China" -- The China-Thailand Railway carries the development expectations of the Thai people

Xinhua News Agency reporters Wang Yaguang, Lin Hao, and Wang Yuanyuan

Located about 80 kilometers north of Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, Ayutthaya is the historic capital of Thailand and one of the transportation hubs that the Thai government has focused on. In February, the local weather becomes hot, and the constant roar of machines adds to the heat. Here, part of the civil works of the China-Thailand Railway Project undertaken by China State Construction Co., Ltd. are under construction, and the skinny deputy chief engineer of the project, Ji Diba Lian, is the most common figure on the project site and in the board room.

The 52-year-old Ji diba is responsible for technical communication and docking with the project supervisor and all aspects. He said: "It is a great honor to work on the China-Thailand Railway Project. China has brought advanced rail transit technology to Thailand, and after the completion of the railway, it will make it more convenient for the Thai people to travel, which is expected to bring a qualitative leap to the Thai economy. ”

The China-Thailand Railway is designed and built using Chinese standards, the first phase of the project connects Bangkok and the northeast department of Thailand, Hu Nakhon Ratchasima, and the second phase of the project will be extended to The Northeast Border Trade Town of Thailand, which is only one river away from vientiane, the capital of Laos, to achieve the connection with the China-Laos Railway, through laos Moding and China Mohan can reach Kunming.

As a key project of the Belt and Road Initiative and the first standard-gauge high-speed railway in Thailand, the China-Thailand Railway will inject new vitality into Thailand's economic and social development and regional connectivity after its completion.

As of 2020, the total length of railway operations in Thailand is less than 5,000 kilometers, most of which are single-line meter gauges, the railway transportation system is outdated, the train speed is slow, the carrying capacity is low, and the delay rate is high. The Thai people interviewed by reporters all expressed their hope that the construction of the China-Thailand Railway will be completed as soon as possible and the status quo of Thailand's railway infrastructure will be changed. In addition, they hope to accelerate the upgrading of Thailand's railway construction capacity through cooperation with China.

In an interview with Xinhua News Agency, Phi Che Gunatangla, deputy director of the Rail Transit Department of the Ministry of Transport of Thailand, said: "Thailand and China have a long history of friendship, and we are very pleased to see the implementation of the Thailand-China railway cooperation project, and hope that China's advanced high-speed rail technology with international standards can help Thailand develop rail transit." ”

Ji Diba, who has been to Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Jiuzhaigou in Sichuan, regrets that he did not have the opportunity to take the high-speed rail when he was in China, and has always wanted to experience the speed of China's high-speed rail. "After the China-Thailand Railway is completed and opened to traffic, I must experience it, after all, it is a project that I personally participated in the construction." I want to take a train from my hometown of Bangkok all the way to Kunming, enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way, and take my family to Beijing to climb the Great Wall. ”

For Jidiba, the China-Thailand Railway is a career path. For the 24-year-old Bai Hao (Thai name: Gandhi Ta Danao), the railway changed his life plan. "Without the China-Thailand Railway and the China-Thailand High-Speed Rail Talent Training Program, I would have gone to Bangkok to learn to repair cars and then find a job in car repair. Now I want to wait for the Completion and Opening of the China-Thailand Railway to engage in relevant work. He said in an interview with reporters.

Through the China-Thailand High-Speed Rail Talent Training Program, Bai Hao went to Wuhan Railway Vocational and Technical College in China for an 8-month training, learned to speak Chinese, and fell in love with Chinese language and Chinese culture ever since.

Tarakorn Vushadi Lagong, deputy director of the Thailand-China Belt and Road Cooperative Research Centre, said: "Thailand needs development opportunities, and the completion of the China-Thailand railway will not only benefit Thailand's tourism, service industry and other industries, but also drive regional economic development." The opening of the China-Laos railway has ushered in a new era in Laos, and Thailand will miss the opportunity for development if it does not accelerate the construction of railways. ”

(Editor-in-charge: Wang Yuyu, Xu Xiangli)