A team from China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) is in Cambodia and will soon begin a feasibility study on improving the Kingdom’s railways.
The CRCC visit follows Prime Minister Hun Sen’s request for it to help make the local railway system more efficient. He made the request two weeks ago during the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Forum in Beijing.
Leading his company’s delegation, vice-president Wang Wenzhong met with Transport Minister Sun Chanthol on Thursday in Phnom Penh, the Khmer Times reported on Friday.
During the meeting, Wang said the company would be carrying out additional studies, on a monorail and a subway project, to improve public transport in the capital, according to a statement from the Cambodian Ministry of Transport.
The ministry said the studies "will help the Cambodian government decide the best course of action to take to reduce traffic congestion in the capital".
CRCC and the local company Royal Railways have agreed to team up to revamp railways in the Kingdom.
“We don’t know how long the team will take to conduct the study. There are now 18 Chinese experts here working with Cambodian officials to collect data,” said ministry spokesman Vasim Sorya.
The Cambodian government also asked CRCC to prepare a feasibility study for a new rail line connecting Siem Reap and Serey Sophoan district in Banteay Meanchey province.
Cambodia now has two rail lines: the southern line, connecting Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville, and the northern one, linking the capital with Poipet.