Higher costs expected in Cambodia stretch of Trans-Asia Railway

Tue, 18 Aug 2009DPA
Phnom Penh - A key link of the Cambodian stretch of the Trans-Asia Railway, which will eventually connect Singapore with Kunming in China, will need extra cash to fund its construction, local media reported Monday. The section of the railway examined in a recent study will run 255 kilometres east from near the capital Phnom Penh and connect to Vietnam's railway at Loc Ninh.The feasibility study by the China Railway Group estimates this stretch will cost between 500 million and 600 million US dollars, the Phnom Penh Post newspaper reported.The study blamed the higher-than-expected cost on the number of bridges needed to span the Mekong and other rivers between Phnom Penh and Vietnam. It stated that two bridges spanning 1,500 metres and 1,000 metres in length would cost up to 266 million dollars. Smaller bridges would add another 120 million dollars.