Authorities are hoping to revive train service between Sungai Kolok and Kelantan, which was halted two decades ago, in order to improve Thai-Malaysian connectivity.
The proposal is being spearheaded by the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre (SBPAC), which held a meeting recently with railway authorities from Thailand and Malaysia in Narathiwat province to discuss the project. The Thai consul-general in Kelantan state and the Malaysian consul-general in Songkhla also attended, said Rear Adm Somkiat Polprayoon, the SBPAC secretary-general.
RAdm Somkiat said the talks were a follow-up to an agreement reached between Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad in October last year to enhance road and rail connectivity between southern Thailand and northern Malaysia.
The link being discussed would be between the Sungai Kolok train station in Narathiwat and the Tumpat station in the Malaysian state of Kelantan.
Malaysian authorities welcomed the plan and expressed readiness to realise it, RAdm Somkiat said.
“The reopening of the railway will not take long. Development will be seen within this year. The beginning today will lead to a long-term connection in the future,” he said.
In 1954, the State Railway of Thailand and the Federated Malay States Railways signed a joint train service treaty that covered service between Sungai Kolok and Tumpat. However, the service was halted about two decades ago because the route was being used for smuggling both goods and people.
Circumstances have changed since then and the restoration of service would stimulate border trade and economic development, said RAdm Somkiat, who plans to propose the project soon to Prime Minister Prayut.
Rail service is currently available between Hat Yai on Songkhla and Kuala Lumpur, and a link between Hat Yai and Sungai Kolok could further improve transport services, he added.
Thailand and Cambodia recently restored rail service that was suspended 46 years ago because of conflict in Cambodia, with the completion of the “missing link” between Aranyaprathet and Poipet.