The Tokyo Bay Bridge of Southeast Asia

Quy Nhon trip report. News: Cambodia seeks big bucks from Beijing, deal inked for Sangley airport project, and Bangkok's 3-airport railway

Greetings from Danang! I was last here late last year when the city was still cleaning up after a historic flood. It’s good to be back here when the sun is shining.

I have been cruising around on a motorbike to compile a body count of abandoned hotels, and there are many along the coast. I posted an update on Linkedin, which I’m using for updates and random link posting instead of Twitter. Follow me here.

A Danang report will be out for paid subscribers next week.

Latest posts at Future Southeast Asia

The Bataan–Cavite Interlink Bridge is a proposed bridge across Manila Bay. If all goes to plan, construction will begin in 2024. The bridge is inspired by the Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line (the bridge-tunnel combination that crosses Tokyo Bay). There will be no tunnel, but it does the same job as the Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line by bypassing a megacity for inter-provincial travel. It will also be the longest bridge in Southeast Asia.

Tokyo is a good model for Manila to follow. They need to build a Tokyo-style railway for the city, and removing through traffic from Metro Manila would be another layer of useful infrastructure.

Dispatches from Southeast Asia

My 2023 trip report for Quy Nhon, the city that could be the next big thing in Vietnam.

News

🇰🇭 Cambodia

“Up to $30 billion in financing is potentially on the table – most of it from China.”

🇮🇩 Indonesia

“In the online version of Nusantara, nobody can hear you protest.”

🇱🇦 Laos

🇲🇾 Malaysia

“Malaysia could potentially lose its beautiful beaches if coastal erosion continues at its current rate, says an ecotourism group.”

🇵🇭 Philippines

🇸🇬 Singapore

“Ties remain strong but occasional frictions such as Pedra Branca island and the cancellation of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore rail project remain.”

🇹🇭 Thailand

“Urban planning and city development are crucial for making the capital more climate resilient, experts say.”

🇻🇳 Vietnam

“Once expected to be the Pudong of Vietnam, after more than a decade of slow development the Thu Thiem area of Ho Chi Minh City is not close to fulfilling its potential, with incomplete plans galore.”

“The Ministry of Transport is going to reconsider the Yen Vien - Pha Lai - Ha Long - Cai Lan railway project in 2024 after it has been suspended for nearly 20 years due to investment problems.”

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