THAILAND: The government has approved a 13·4 km extension of Bangkok Orange Line west across the city centre, awarding Blue and Purple line operator Bangkok Expressway & Metro a 140bn baht 30-year public-private partnership contract for construction and operation on July 18.
The tunnelled extension will connect Bang Khun Non on the Blue Line west of the Chao Praya river to a second Blue Line interchange at Thailand Cultural Centre on the east side of the city centre. Three of the 10 intermediate underground stations will interchange with other lines. Progress on the western section has been delayed by legal disputes over the concessionaire tendering process.
Work on the 22·4 km eastern leg of the Orange line, between Thailand Cultural Centre and Yaek Rom Klao, began in 2017. In total there will be 17 stations, including interchanges with the Yellow Line monorail at Yaek Lam Sali and the Pink Line monorail at Min Buri, with the six easternmost stops being on elevated alignment. This initial section of the Orange Line is due to open in 2028, with the city centre western extension scheduled to open two years later, bringing the total route length to 35·9 km.
With the Orange Line’s second phase now approved, BEM is expected to order 51 three-car trains: 30 would be for the Orange Line, with the rest expanding the Blue Line fleet to cope with expected traffic growth. These will operate from 750 V DC third-rail supply and be based at an expanded Rama 9 depot, 1 km east of Thailand Cultural Centre. Bids have been received from Siemens Mobility, which supplied the existing Blue Line fleet, and Japan’s J-TREC.
