The reduction in trains using the old Hua Lamphong station allowed an exhibition ‘Unfolding Bangkok – Living Old Building’ to take place on March 18-26, with two 2-6-0 steam locos posed in the platforms. SRT Nos. 713 and 715, retained for special trains, are seen at Hua Lamphong on March 17. They were built in Japan as Japanese Class C56 in the late 1930s and imported into Thailand during the Second World War. No. 713, furthest from the camera, carries its original Japanese C56 15 number.
D LANGHAM
LONG distance and main line services began using Bangkok’s new Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal on January 19. The name means ‘prosperity of Bangkok’ and was chosen by the Thai King. The $457 million station – previously known as ‘Bang Sue Grand station’ after the nearby Bang Sue junction – was built between 2013 and 2021 and opened to ‘Red Line’ metro services in
August 2021, but part of the building, equipped with 26 platforms, was temporarily used as a Covid-19 vaccination centre until September 2022. The services transferred to Krung Thep Aphiwat formerly used the historic Hua Lamphong terminus, and more than 50 daily services have been moved, although currently about 25 trains daily still use the old station.
New Chinese-built diesel loco 5201 at Krung Thep Aphiwat station on February 25, having arrived with Southern Line train 38 from Sungai Kolok (close to the Thai/Malaysian border). Chinese firm CRRC is supplying 50 of the type CDA5B1 CoCo diesel locos, equipped with 2400kW MTU 16V4000 R43L engines, to Thai national operator SRT from its CRRC Qishuyan works. The first 20 were delivered by sea via Shanghai in late 2021 and entered service in January 2022; 30 more are on order.
D LANGHAM