Double-track railway to be proposed to Ubon Ratchathani cabinet meeting

The private sector of the northeastern province of Ubon Ratchathani plans to propose the construction of a double-track railway to the Lao border and the expansion of Ubon Ratchathani airport and the regional hospital during the mobile Cabinet meeting in Ubon Ratchathani and Amnat Charoen on July 23-24.

Somchart Pongpanakrai, president of the Ubon Ratchathani Chamber of Commerce, said the public sector wants to ask the government to expand an existing highway to four lanes from Ubon Ratchathani to Tambon Ban Tan in Ban Tan district where the 6th Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge will be built and improve Highway 24 from Det Udom distict to Chong Mek, a border check-point with Laos.

He said a proposal will also be made for the Ubon Ratchathani international airport to have five more parking bays to accommodate about 1.4 million passengers using the airport annually.

The Ubon Ratchathani Regional Hospital should also be expanded to have 1,099 beds to take patients from the lower Northeast and neighbouring Laos.

Mr Somchart said an 80-kilometre double-track railway should also be built from Warin Chamrap district to the Thai-Lao border checkpoint with Laos in Sirindhorn district with a budget of about 17 billion baht to facilitate the transport of goods and people.

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/double-track-railway-proposed-ubon-ratchathani-cabinet-meeting/