Boten–Vientiane railway

The railway is part of the Laos–China Railway which is in turn part of the broader Laos–China Economic Corridor.{{Cite book |last1=Curtis |first1=Simon |title=The Belt and Road City: Geopolitics, Urbanization, and China's Search for a New International Order |last2=Klaus |first2=Ian |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=9780300266900 |location=New Haven and London |publication-date=2024 |doi=10.2307/jj.11589102 |jstor=jj.11589102}}{{Rp|page=129}}

{{further|Rail transport in Laos}}

Laos is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia, which burdens it with a comparative disadvantage in trade.{{Cite web|date=2021-03-05|title=How Laos is overcoming landlockedness and bolstering growth|url=https://www.eastasiaforum.org/2021/03/05/how-laos-is-overcoming-landlockedness-and-bolstering-growth/|access-date=2021-05-02|website=East Asia Forum|language=en}} During French rule, the French failed to develop a plan to build railways in Laos, with only the {{Cvt|7|km}} Don Det–Don Khon railway being completed.{{Cite web |last=Freeman |first=Nick |date=2019-12-11 |title=Laos' high-speed railway coming round the bend |url=http://www.thinkchina.sg/laos-high-speed-railway-coming-round-bend |access-date=2020-11-05 |website=ThinkChina Big reads, Opinion & Columns on China |language=en}} A railway link from China through Laos would greatly reduce cargo transit times and transportation costs between the two countries.

The first talks about the railway linking Laos and China began in 2001. A Lao politician of Chinese descent, Somsavat Lengsavad, was reportedly the driving force behind the project on the Laotian side. In October 2010, plans were announced for a {{convert|530|km}} standard gauge railway linking Vientiane to Xishuangbanna, in Yunnan province in China.[http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews/321609/laos-china-railways-ready-to-roll Laos–China railways ready to roll], 2012-11-16{{cite web |url=http://www.railwaysafrica.com/blog/2010/10/new-china-laos-link/ |access-date=2010-11-09 |title=NEW CHINA–LAOS LINK |publisher = Railways Africa}} Construction was expected to begin in 2011, for completion in 2014.{{cite web |url = http://www.railwaysafrica.com/blog/2010/12/laos-link-with-china/ |access-date=2010-12-12 |title=LAOS LINK WITH CHINA |publisher = Railways Africa|date=2010-12-12}}{{cite web |url = http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/chinas-horizons-extend-southwards.html |access-date=2011-01-06 |title = Railway Gazette: China's horizons extend southwards |date=2011-01-06}} There are plans to extend this railway south, from Vientiane across the Thai border to Bangkok.{{cite web |url = http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/cross-border-construction-soon.html |access-date=2011-02-27 |title=Railway Gazette: Cross-border construction soon}}

The project initially stalled in the wake of the 2011 corruption scandal involving China's minister of railways, Liu Zhijun, but negotiations continued. In November 2012, the Laotian press reported that the money for the construction of the railway would be borrowed from the Export–Import Bank of China,{{cite web |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203897404578076193521305574 |title=Laos Says China to Finance Rail Link |website=The Wall Street Journal |date=24 October 2012}} and construction would be started in 2013 and completed in 2018. By 2015, a revised plan was agreed upon, under which both countries would jointly finance and operate the railway with a build-operate-transfer arrangement.{{cite web |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/International-Relations/Land-locked-Laos-on-track-for-controversial-China-rail-link |title=Land-locked Laos on track for controversial China rail link |website=Nikkei Asian Review |date=24 June 2017}} Construction work worth US$1.2 billion was awarded to the China Railway Group in September 2015.

File:中国ラオス鉄道.jpg

File:Bridge construction in Luang Prabang Province 2.jpg

Construction began at Luang Prabang on 25 December 2016. At the end of 2017, the construction phase was 20% completed,{{cite web|url=https://www.nationthailand.com/detail/breakingnews/30338175|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190612015748/http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/breakingnews/30338175|archive-date=2019-06-12|title=Laos–China railway '20.3 per cent complete', compensation still unpaid|website=The Nation|url-status=live|date=7 February 2018}} and in September 2019 progress was reported as 80% completed.{{Cite web|url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-09/22/c_138412982.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190924045244/http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-09/22/c_138412982.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 24, 2019|title=Nearly 80 pct of China–Laos railway construction completed|website=Xinhua News Agency|date=22 September 2019|access-date=2020-01-31}} Unexploded bombs that have been dropped during the Vietnam War would also be removed along the route.{{Cite web|url=http://www.china.org.cn/world/Off_the_Wire/2016-12/09/content_39885333.htm|title=Unexploded ordnance to be cleaned along Laos–China railway|website=China Internet Information Center}}

{{as of|June 2020}}, Chinese state media reported that the US$6 billion project was 90% complete. Work crews started laying track in Laos in March 2020, five years after breaking ground. With all of the hundreds of tunnels, bridges and viaducts completed, cargo service was scheduled to start from December 2021.{{Cite web|url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-09/29/c_139406173.htm|title = China–Laos railway holes all 75 tunnels – Xinhua | English.news.cn}} In April 2021, the northernmost section in Luang Namtha Province was 97% complete. Track laying of the last section in Oudomxay Province would be completed in May, leaving the project well on track for a 2021 opening.{{Cite web|title=ການກໍ່ສ້າງພື້ນຖານໂຄງສ້າງທາງລົດໄຟ ລາວ-ຈີນ ໄລຍະທາງຜ່ານແຂວງຫຼວງນ້ຳທາ ສຳເລັດແລ້ວ 97%|trans-title=Construction of Lao–China Railway Infrastructure via Luang Namtha Province Completed 97%|url=https://targetlaos.com/article/58835|url-status=live|access-date=2021-05-04|website=Target Magazine|language=lo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210504092730/https://targetlaos.com/article/58835 |archive-date=2021-05-04 }} Track-laying was officially completed on 12 October 2021. The first EMU was delivered to Vientiane on 16 October 2021, and the line opened on 3 December 2021, a day after the 46th anniversary of the Lao PDR.

The railway is expected to boost tourism, with passenger traffic to account for the majority of traffic on the line.{{Cite web|author=Brian King|title=Chinese railway could put Laos on the tourist map|url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/could-china-put-laos-on-the-tourist-map/index.html|access-date=2020-11-05|website=CNN|date=22 August 2017 |language=en}} The Thai province of Nong Khai is also expected to gain more visitors through the railway, as well as fruit exports from Thailand to China benefiting from reduced transportation costs.{{Cite web|date=2021-08-10|title=Laos' China-backed railway: hopes in Thailand, fears in Luang Prabang|url=https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3144423/laos-china-funded-belt-and-road-railway-thailand-licks-its-lips|access-date=2021-08-12|website=South China Morning Post|language=en}}

As of 2024, it is the most significant Belt and Road Initiative project in Laos.{{Cite book |last=Gerstl |first=Alfred |title=Contemporary China: a New Superpower? |publisher=Routledge |year=2023 |isbn=978-1-03-239508-1 |editor-last=Kironska |editor-first=Kristina |chapter=China in its Immediate Neighborhood |editor-last2=Turscanyi |editor-first2=Richard Q.}}{{Rp|page=212}}

Since the line uses a different rail gauge from the existing Thai Northeastern Line link from Bangkok to Vientiane, running into Thailand is not yet possible for passenger trains. A branch to "Thanaleng Dry Port freight yard" and "Vientiane South" was completed in July 2022, allowing transfer of cargo between Thai metre gauge railway and China standard gauge railway.

However, the Vientiane end of the line will eventually cross the Mekong River on a new bridge to meet up with the Bangkok–Nong Khai high-speed railway once it is completed, making the connection.{{cite news | url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2224707/calls-to-speed-up-link-to-laos-china-line | title=Calls to speed up link to Laos–China line | newspaper=Bangkok Post }} As of 2023, the design of this extension is in progress with a target completion date of 2028.{{cite web | url=https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2023/12/18/high-speed-rail-linking-thailand039s-nong-khai-and-laos-capital-vientiane-expected-to-complete-in-2028 | title=High-speed rail linking Thailand's Nong Khai and Laos capital Vientiane expected to complete in 2028 }}

The cost of the project is estimated at US$5.965 billion{{Cite web|url=https://www.laophattananews.com/archives/104919|title = ເສັ້ນທາງລົດໄຟ ລາວ-ຈີນ ຈະເລີ່ມແລ່ນທົດລອງທ້າຍປີນີ້|date = 31 March 2021}} or RMB 37.425 billion.{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnbridge.cn/html/2020/news_0324/189487.html|title=中老铁路-新建铁路磨丁至万象线站房及相关工程施工总价承包中标结果 – 路桥资讯-桥梁要闻、会展报告、路桥政策-中国桥梁网 –}} The railway is 60% funded with debt financing ($3.6 billion) from the Export–Import Bank of China, and the remaining 40% ($2.4 billion) by a joint venture company between the two countries, in which China holds a 70% stake. Of the remaining 30%, the Laotian government disburses $250 million from its national budget and borrows $480 million further from the Export–Import Bank of China.{{cite web|url=https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3041394/can-laos-profit-china-rail-link-despite-being-us15-billion-debt|title=Can Laos profit from China rail link despite being US$1.5 billion in debt?|date=10 December 2019|publisher=South China Morning Post}} It is the most expensive and largest project to be constructed in Laos as of 2021.

The cost of the railway has contributed to a US$480 million increase in Lao debt to the Export–Import Bank of China. Western publications subsequently claimed that Laos could end up falling into a default on its debts.{{cite web|url=https://thediplomat.com/2020/09/laos-stumbles-under-rising-chinese-debt-burden/|title=Laos Stumbles Under Rising Chinese Debt Burden|date=7 September 2020|publisher=The Diplomat}}{{cite web|url=https://in.reuters.com/article/us-china-laos-exclusive-idINKBN25V14C|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200906042939/https://in.reuters.com/article/us-china-laos-exclusive-idINKBN25V14C|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 6, 2020|title=Taking power – Chinese firm to run Laos electric grid amid default warnings|date=4 September 2020|publisher=Reuters}} In 2019, the Australian think-tank Lowy Institute estimated Laos' debt to China at 45% of its GDP. In 2020, American credit agency Fitch Ratings assigned Laos a 'CCC' credit rating, stating that the country has "excessive debt".{{cite web|url=https://www.thailand-business-news.com/asean/laos/81409-chinas-debt-trap-diplomacy-laos-credit-rating-downgraded-to-ccc.html|title=China's debt-trap diplomacy: Laos' credit rating downgraded to CCC|date=2 November 2020|publisher=Thailand Business News}}

Between January 2021 and December 2021, the Laos–China Railway as a whole transported over 1 million passengers and 500,000 tonnes of cargo, according to the transport authorities of Yunnan Province.{{Cite web|title=China–Laos Railway transports over one million passengers since launch |url=https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2022/01/30/china-laos-railway-transports-over-one-million-passengers-since-launch|access-date=2022-01-30}} In 2023, the railway had an annual ridership of 3.1 million passengers.{{cite web|url=https://laotiantimes.com/2024/01/23/laos-china-railway-boosts-daily-trips-in-preparation-of-tourism-surge/ |title=Laos-China Railway Boosts Daily Trips in Preparation of Tourism Surge |website=Laotian Times |date=23 January 2024 |first=Jonathan |last=Meadley }}

47% of the railway is spanned over 75 tunnels and 15% is set on viaducts spread over 167 bridges.{{Cite news|url=https://laotiantimes.com/2017/02/20/everything-you-need-to-know-laos-china-railway/|title=Everything You Need to Know About the Laos–China Railway|date=20 February 2017|work=The Laotian Times|access-date=2018-12-20}} Vientiane railway station, the largest station on the railway, is situated in Xay Village in Xaythany District and consists of four platforms with seven track lines and two additional platforms with three lines reserved; it is expected to connect with other railway lines planned for Laos. The station can accommodate up to 2,500 passengers with a total area of 14,543 square metres.{{cite news |last1=Phonevilay |first1=Latsamy |title=Construction of Vientiane Station Commences on Laos–China Railway |url=https://laotiantimes.com/2020/07/04/construction-of-vientiane-station-commences-on-laos-china-railway/ |access-date=6 July 2020 |work=The Laotian Times |date=4 July 2020}}

The railway is built on a single track with passing loops and is electrified to China's Class I trunk railway standards, suitable for {{Cvt|160|km/h|round=5}} passenger and {{Cvt|120|km/h}} freight trains, making Laos the first country to connect to the Chinese high-speed railway network using Chinese technology.

File:Laos-China-Railway.jpg trainsets, with bilingual signage in Laotian and Chinese]]

Passenger services employ CR200J trainsets for express passenger train and China Railway 25G passenger coaches for ordinary passenger train, and for freight hauling and normal passenger service, HXD3CA locomotives are used.{{Cite web|title=รบ.ลาวตั้งชื่อรถไฟ "ล้านช้าง-แคนลาว" ขบวนแรกข้ามจากจีนถึงบ่อเต็น 14 ต.ค.|url=https://mgronline.com/indochina/detail/9640000101634|date=13 October 2021|access-date=16 October 2021|website=mgronline.com|language=Thai}}{{Cite web|title=Công ty Đường sắt Lào Trung mua hai đoàn tàu CR200J của Trung Quốc|url=https://tapchilaoviet.org/tin-bai-noi-bat/cong-ty-duong-sat-lao-trung-mua-hai-doan-tau-cr200j-cua-trung-quoc-21597.html|date=29 September 2020|access-date=2 July 2021|website=tapchilaoviet.org|language=Vietnamese}}{{Cite web|title="绿巨人"CR200J动车将跑上中老铁路，昆明直达老挝首都{{!}}界面新闻|url=https://www.jiemian.com/article/4228600.html|access-date=2021-07-02|website=www.jiemian.com|language=zh}}

On 4 December 2021, a day after opening the China–Laos railway, the Vientiane Logistics Park, one of a total of nine logistics centres in Laos, was officially opened by Prime Minister Phankham Viphavanh at Thanaleng.The Ambassador of Timor-Leste in Vientiane: [https://www.facebook.com/rdtlembvientiane/posts/417551956682048 Thanaleng Dry Port International Border Checkpoints was officially inaugurated by H.E. Mr. Phankham Viphavanh, Prime Minister of Laos. Thanaleng Dry Port is located at prime location with an extensive area of 382 hectares, and granted the exclusive privilege by the Lao government, as a flagship to drive the national logistics strategy to transform Laos from a landlocked into a land linked country. Thanaleng and Vientiane Logistic Park project is one of the 9 Dry ports in Laos., 4 December 2021], retrieved 4 December 2021.

A total of 32 stations are planned along the line,{{Cite web|url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/world/2018-03/28/c_129839102.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180331230833/http://www.xinhuanet.com/world/2018-03/28/c_129839102.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 31, 2018|title=老挝北部的中老铁路建设如火如荼-新华网 |date = 28 March 2018}} of which 21 stations were initially constructed, including 10 passenger stations and 11 cargo stations:{{Cite web|url=http://www.crceg.com/tabid/245/InfoID/6757/frtid/140/Default.aspx|title=集团公司党委书记、董事长张建喜出席中老铁路站房及相关工程施工合同签约仪式–公共建筑–中国中铁建工集团|date=14 April 2020}}{{Dead link|date=October 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnbridge.cn/html/2020/news_0324/189487.html|title=中老铁路-新建铁路磨丁至万象线站房及相关工程施工总价承包中标结果 – 路桥资讯-桥梁要闻、会展报告、路桥政策-中国桥梁网 |date = 24 March 2020}}{{Cite web|url = https://www.163.com/dy/article/F0L0II9D0511T04N.html|title = 中老铁路-新建铁路磨丁至万象线四电工程施工总价承包中标结果|date = 18 December 2019|access-date = 11 June 2021|archive-date = 5 October 2022|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221005003610/https://www.163.com/dy/article/F0L0II9D0511T04N.html|url-status = dead}}

Radio Free Asia reported in October 2021 that some Lao villagers displaced from their land by the line's construction complained that they had still not received compensation.{{Cite news |last=Finney |first=Richard |date=2021-10-05 |title=Lao Villagers Not Yet Paid For Land Lost to China-Backed High-Speed Rail Project |work=Radio Free Asia |url=https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/land-10052021172730.html}}

In the first year of operation, the railway only allowed ticket purchases up to three days in advance and online sales were not available. That resulted in extremely long lines at ticket offices, and express trains often sold out the day ticket sales opened.{{Cite web |url=https://laotiantimes.com/2022/01/13/laos-china-railway-allows-three-day-advance-ticket-purchases/ |title=Laos–China Railway Allows Three-Day Advance Ticket Purchases |first=Khonephachanh |last=Syboun |date=13 January 2022 |accessdate=18 April 2023}} This has since been ameliorated with the LCR mobile app, which allows online purchase of tickets.{{Cite web|url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cars.laosticket |title=LCR Ticket app on Google Play |accessdate=19 February 2025}}

• Rail transport in Laos
• Vientiane–Boten Expressway
• Railway stations in Laos
• China–Laos relations
• CR Yuxi–Mohan railway
• MRL East Coast Rail Link

{{reflist}}

• [http://www.lcrc.ltd/ Laos–China Railway Co., Ltd.] – a joint venture between Laos and China to build and operate the railway.
• [https://www.facebook.com/LaosChinaRailway/ Official Facebook page with ticket availability]
• [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cars.laosticket&hl=en&gl=LA Official Laos–China Railway ticketing app (Android)]
• [https://www.openstreetmap.org/relation/7750061 Boten–Vientiane railway on OpenStreetMap]
• [https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=12kMu3ufc913F41gSkuM2UKpRnaoCA4Uq Boten–Vientiane railway on Google Maps]
• [https://www.designforconservation.org/map-northernlaos Full construction details superimposed on a satellite map by Design for Conservation]

{{Rail transport in Laos}}

{{Kunming–Singapore railway}}

{{One Belt, One Road}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boten-Vientiane Railway}}

Category:Standard-gauge railways in Laos

Category:Railway lines in Laos

Category:China–Laos relations

Category:Belt and Road Initiative

Category:Transport infrastructure in Laos

Category:Railway lines opened in 2021

Category:25 kV AC railway electrification