Cambodia approves new Ratanakiri airport, Indonesia to reactivate 12,000 km of railway lines, Trans-Borneo Railway feasibility study expected by mid-year, Visayas-Mindanao link feasibility study underway, U-Tapao Airport project to kick off on April 3, Vietnam PM orders emergency construction of HCMC-Long Thanh railway link.
Latest posts at Future Southeast Asia
Future Southeast Asia: February 2026
Travel update, Future Southeast Asia newsletter migration, and a summary of the last month’s newsletters. Article updates include The Thai Land Bridge proposal lives on (for now), and Vientiane’s short-lived BRT. Greetings from Australia! I’m back in my homeland for a short visit, and I will be returning to Southeast Asia next month to resume […]
Line 2 HCMC Metro
Line 2 of the Ho Chi Minh City Metro (HCMC Metro) is the under-construction second line of the Ho Chi Minh City transit system. Phase 1 will go from Ben Thanh Station (interchanging with Line 1) to Tham Luong. The total length is 11.3 km (9.3 km underground and 2 km elevated) with 11 stations […]
Future Southeast Asia News [25 Feb 2026]
Revised Penang LRT, Metro Cebu Subway feasibility study in Oct 2026, first Thai-built light rail tram begins test runs in Khon Kaen, new passenger terminal for Dili Airport, HCMC plans 99-story tower for international financial center in Thu Thiem.
Ho Chi Minh City – Can Tho Railway (Mekong Delta Railway)
The Mekong Delta Railway is a planned railway from Ho Chi Minh City to Can Tho. This guide covers ongoing updates of this line and other proposed railways in the Mekong Delta. Map of Mekong Delta and proposed railway stations This map includes possible stations on the Ho Chi Minh City to Can Tho railway, […]
Bangkok trip report (2025 edition)
The largest urban rooftop garden in Thailand, boring blue boxes (a panacea for the blight of boring blue boxes), the apartment where you can drive to your living room, the Chinatown new urban area (and a new Chinatown arch), Orange Line update, and building a floodwater tunnel under a canal. This is my annual Bangkok […]
Khon Kaen Transit System – The proposed light rail transit (LRT) in Khon Kaen
The Khon Kaen Transit System (KKTS) is a proposed light rail transit (LRT) and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in Khon Kaen Khon in the Isaan region of Northeast Thailand. A BRT system of 4 lines was proposed in 2012, and in 2015 the plan was changed to convert the North-South Red BRT line into a […]
Future Southeast Asia News [18 Feb 2026]
Indonesia to use state budget to repay Whoosh high-speed rail debt, Savannakhet’s 270-meter wooden bridge faces final season, Malaysia’s new rail system stages preview run, Thai–Chinese high-speed rail phase 1 hits 51%, Vietnam proposes expressway link between Ho Chi Minh City and Phnom Penh. Happy Year of the Horse from Ho Chi Minh City! Here […]
Why the Thai Land Bridge is a bad idea
The Thai Land Bridge has been proposed as an alternative to the Thai Canal. Here’s why it’s a bad idea. The Thai Land Bridge is a proposed transport corridor in Southern Thailand connecting the Andaman Sea to the Gulf of Thailand. The proposal is an alternative to the Thai Canal (also known as the Kra […]
Thai Land Bridge: The proposed Ranong-Chumphon shipping short-cut
The Thai Land Bridge is a proposed rail and road transport corridor in Southern Thailand connecting the Andaman Sea to the Gulf of Thailand. This has been touted as an alternative to the Thai Canal, which would cut a canal across Southern Thailand as a short cut to the Strait of Malacca. Deep sea ports […]
