The future train to Lake Toba

Hello from Hua Hin! This is my last Hua Hin hello for now, as I will go to Bangkok next week to attend Asia Pacific Rail 2023. Let me know if you are going!

I don’t usually announce my travel plans as they tend to change. I have hinted that I want to go to Jakarta to ride the high-speed rail, but I have been reluctant to book anything as these projects are usually delayed. Things are looking better after a test run was completed this week (see link in the news).

Ultimately I would like to go to Sumatra (if I can work out the internal flights) and see the fragmented railway that will form put of the railway to Lake Toba (this week’s main article). To top it off I would then go to Sulawesi to see the new railway there.

For paid subscribers I have my thoughts on the Penang South Islands project.

Dispatches from Southeast Asia

• Fix Penang Island instead of making new islands (Paid Subscribers)

The supposed green utopia of the Penang South Islands project will do nothing to fix the current urban problems of the island of Penang.

Latest posts at Future Southeast Asia

• Siantar – Parapat Railway: The missing link for the Medan – Lake Toba Railway

Lake Toba is one of the 10 New Balis (for want of a better slogan), and a railway would go a long way in making this amazing place more accessible. Qatar Airways are planning to fly to medan from next year as well, so maybe more tourists will start a trip in Sumatra instead of just staying in Bali.

News

• IN FOCUS: How Southeast Asian cities lack ‘political will’ to fix notorious traffic jams

• Charge+ unveils plan for charging highway across Southeast Asia

• Southeast Asia’s ride-hailing app Grab sees users pulling back

🇰🇭 Cambodia

• PM marks 10th anniversary of BRI

• Cambodia has benefited from BRI projects, but must be more strategic going forward

• Phnom Penh-Bavet Expressway to take 4 Years for construction, will connect to Ho Chi Minh City

• ‘Mid-Oct’ launch confirmed for Siem Reap airport

• Dara Sakor International Airport hits another delay

• ‘White Building’ review: Coming of age in Cambodia

“Kavich Neang’s lush feature tells a largely autobiographical tale of growing up in a building whose often painful history is a microcosm of his country’s.”

🇮🇩 Indonesia

• Jakarta to Bandung in one hour: Indonesia’s new high-speed train completes first trial run

• There is a never-ending stream of articles about Nusantara, and I am filing the most important articles on the Nusantara page. One headline I see often is the “Jakarta is moving” narrative, as if the entire city is moving.

Indonesia is moving 10 million people to this ‘jungle utopia’ - but is it all as it seems?

• Construction of proposed LRT system in Indonesia’s Batam slated to begin in mid-2024

• Are Ubud’s traffic issues resolved? Bali officials have just made huge changes

🇱🇦 Laos

• Laos-Vietnam Friendship Hospital opens in Xieng Khouang

• Patuxay Monument in Vientiane Capital to get makeover

🇲🇾 Malaysia

• Installation of ECRL track to start year-end, involving Gebeng-Dungun route

• Sarawak-Kalimantan railway proposal needs federal level discussion, says state minister

• Three contra-flow lanes in KL from July 3 to ease peak-hour traffic

• King's Park, Genting Highlands's newest entertainment hub to launch soon

• Johor to solve causeway congestion by next year

• LRT not the best form of transport on this small island, says PRM (Penang)

• Airport expansion plan to position state as Asian vacation capital (Penang)

• Phase 1 of KUTS project 8.25 per cent completed, says Lee

"Phase 1 of Kuching Urban Transportation System (KUTS) project, which involves the design, construction and commissioning of the three Autonomous Rapid Transit (ART) lines, was 8.25 per cent completed as of the first quarter of this year".

• Check out this high-resolution 1957 map of Kuala Lumpur

My first visit to KL was after the Petronas Twin Towers were built, so I never saw that area when it was once a race track.

🇵🇭 Philippines

• Fire hits Manila Central Post Office

“Historic landmark Manila Central Post Office is on fire this Monday morning.” Video.

• PH to receive up to US$4 billion grant from ADB in 2023 – Palace

• Government to spend P1.2 trillion for infrastructure in Mindanao

🇸🇬 Singapore

• Gaia, the largest wooden building in Asia, launched

• 'Doomsday': Singapore renters sound the alarm as prices surge

• A winner has emerged in the old rivalry between Singapore and Hong Kong

“From business to city life, Singapore comes out on top.”

• Singapore’s high costs won’t dethrone the money center… yet

• Bus service 405 in S'pore runs 7 days a year only & goes to Old Choa Chu Kang Road End

🇹🇭 Thailand

• Bangkok’s Brown Line monorail project gets MRTA nod

• MRTA extends contract for Pink Line by 345 days

• Bangkok hopes new govt will help resolve BMA’s mountain of debt to BTSC

“Bangkok administration hopes the new government will step in to resolve the ever-growing debt it owes over the BTS Green Line extension.”

• Making travel available for everyone 

“As the sector recovers, advocates for disabled people say the government and industry operators need to make the country more accessible.”• Article 6 and electric buses in Thailand: how carbon markets speed up the net zero transition

• Unlocking cities’ potential to promote sustainable growth and inclusive development in Thailand

🇻🇳 Vietnam

• Invest in Vietnam's first sustainability center

ViCo is calling for funding for Vietnam's first national center for sustainability in Ho Chi Minh City. This project caught my attention as they are trying to acquire the historic railway administration building in Disrtict 1. This building has been threatened with demolition in the past, so I am heartened to see it potentially put to good use.

From their brochure:

“We believe in the power of adaptive reuse and the potential to create a sustainable future by revitalizing existing buildings. Our mission is to showcase the value of sustainable renovation and heritage preservation in Vietnam, setting a powerful example for responsible redevelopment. “

And:

“This architectural gem offers ample space to accommodate over 300 sustainability professionals from approximately 30 organizations, fostering collaboration, knowledge sharing, and innovation.”

Note: This is not an advertisement and I’m affiliated with this, but if Future Southeast Asia becomes as big a publication as, say,, then it would be a dream to have a Future Southeast Asia office in this building.

• How Can Gio will turn into a seaside resort town

Can Gio is a district of HCMC that is best known for its Mangrove Biosphere Reserve. I will write an article about this once I get the swear words out of my system.

• Gojek inks partnership with Dat Bike in Vietnam

“Gojek – an on-demand, multiservice mobile platform – and Dat Bike – one of the fastest growing electric vehicle startups in Southeast Asia – announced on May 18 that they will partner to pilot the use of electric motorbikes in Gojek's transportation, logistics, and food delivery network in Vietnam.”

• UNDP pilots electric trucks for waste collection in central Vietnam (Hue)

• North-South express railway project could include freight transport function

• Da Nang transforms thousands of condotels into residential apartments

• Expected look for Long Thanh Airport

It’s been a non-stop barrage of bad news about the new HCMC airport, so VnExpress offers up this more hopeful article of what to expect if/when the airport opens.