Southeast Asia Railways News (November 2025)

Introducing Rail Vietnam, high-speed rail debt must not delay Jakarta-Surabaya expansion, Pasir Mas-Rantau Panjang railway restoration, Thailand plans U-Tapao–Trat high-speed rail, Hanoi-Ha Long railway proposal.

Hello from Sapa in the mountains of Northwest Vietnam. I got the bus here from Hanoi, which seems like a weird thing to admit on a rail site, but there is a method to my madness. There is a train from Hanoi to Lao Cai, and from there passengers get a bus to Sapa. This is a very popular trip and it sells out in advance, but I was able to get a ticket for the return journey.

I am in Vietnam to collate information for a new site I have just launched – Rail Vietnam. I started my trip in Da Nang and went to Hue, Dong Ha, Vinh, and Nam Dinh. I was set to complete the journey to Hanoi but the train was cancelled due to the big floods in Central Vietnam. This experience has least given me some insight on what happens when your train is cancelled, so I will write about that.

I announced the new rail site on Nomadic Notes, and you can read more about the project here:

Rail Vietnam – An independent guide to train travel in Vietnam

News

🇮🇩 Indonesia

• Indonesia’s Whoosh high-speed rail tops 12 mln passengers: KCIC [Antara News]
“Indonesia’s Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail, known as Whoosh, has carried more than 12 million passengers since it began commercial operations two years ago, operator PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC) said”.

• High-speed rail debt poses first test for Indonesia’s Danantara (archive) [Bloomberg]
“The sovereign wealth fund will lead negotiations for the debt restructuring of Whoosh, the country’s first high-speed rail.”

• High-speed rail debt must not delay Jakarta-Surabaya expansion: AHY [Antara News]

• Smoke-free trains on the way! Indonesia speeds up railway electrification [Expat Life in Indonesia]
“The Indonesian government is moving swiftly to advance railway electrification across the country, marking a major push toward a more efficient, eco-friendly, and sustainable national transportation system.”

🇱🇦 Laos

• Laos-China Railway transported over 15 million passengers since early 2025 [The Laotian Times]
“Cross-border travel totaled nearly 200,000 passengers, up 3.17 percent year-on-year, state media reported. The Lao section has served over 2.6 million passengers so far this year.”

🇲🇾 Malaysia

• Pasir Mas-Rantau Panjang railway upgrade to begin next year – Loke [Bernama]
“Loke said the initiative aimed to reactivate the line for passenger and cargo train services, thereby enhancing Malaysia-Thailand cross-border rail connectivity through the link to Sungai Golok, Thailand.”

• Gemas-Johor Bahru EDTP: The upgrade that will move millions of Malaysians [Malaysiakini]

• Malaysia yet to decide on development model for KL–Singapore High-Speed Rail [The Edge Malaysia]

• Thailand, Malaysia successfully test ‘Mysawasdee’ cross-border tourist train [The Star]
“The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) has successfully tested the cross-border “MySawasdee” tourist train in collaboration with Malaysia’s national railway operator, Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB), ahead of its scheduled operation by the end of 2025.”

🇲🇲 Myanmar

• Yangon–Nay Pyi Taw Aircon Express adds new Spanish coach trains from October 9 [Eleven Myanmar]

• Yangon-Bagan-Yangon railway route changes [Global New Light of Myanmar]

• Steam locomotives set to boost domestic and foreign tourism [sacoffice]

🇵🇭 Philippines

• DoTr completes pre-feasibility study for Mindanao Railway Project [Philippine News Agency]

• Five firms express interest in North-South rail contract [BusinessWorld]

• Sweden grants $1.3 million for Philippines railway study [The Philippine Star]
“Sweden is providing $1.3 million in grant funding to support the feasibility study of the Subic-Clark-Manila-Batangas (SCMB) Railway, the flagship project of the Luzon Economic Corridor (LEC).”

• Funding gap hounds revival of Lucena-Naga trains [The Philippine Star]
“As funding for a new Bicol Express remains elusive, the Philippine National Railways (PNR) is working to reinstate the old Lucena-Naga service by 2026, although this plan is also hindered by budget gaps.”

🇹🇭 Thailand

• High-speed rail linking Thailand’s three airports on brink of collapse [Khaosod English]
“Nearly six years after signing the public-private partnership (PPP) contract in October 2019, Thailand’s 224.5-billion-baht ($6.8 billion) high-speed rail project connecting Don Mueang, Suvarnabhumi, and U-Tapao airports has made virtually no progress. The mega-project, a cornerstone of the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), now teeters on the edge of collapse”

• Thailand plans U-Tapao–Trat high-speed rail to unlock eastern tourism routes [Pattaya Mail]

• Thailand’s high-speed rail dream inches forward while the region races ahead [Time Out Thailand]
“Thailand’s long-awaited high-speed rail link to China is still stuck at the station – but when it finally leaves, it could transform the country’s overlooked northeast into Southeast Asia’s next great weekend escape.”

• SRT invites travellers to enjoy scenic ‘floating train’ ride at Pa Sak Jolasid Dam [The Nation]

• SRT successfully tests “MySawasdee” train with Malaysia, extends route to Surat Thani [The Nation]