Airport Rail Link (Bangkok)
The Suvarnabhumi Airport Rail Link, usually only Airport Rail Link, is a light rail public transport in Bangkok, which with the city center of Bangkok, capital of Thailand, connecting the airport Suvarnabhumi. The operator is a subsidiary of the Thai State Railway (SRT ), the SRT Electrified Train ( SRTET ). The official opening took place on 5 December 2009, the paid passenger service began on August 23, 2010. The drivers to be provided by Siemens, as the driver of the SRT are supposedly not yet sufficiently developed.
Rolling stock
The electrical multiple units ( EMU - electric multiple unit ), based on the Desiro UK Class 360 belong to the developed by Siemens Mobility vehicle Siemens Desiro family. The mission of the vehicles worth 58.4 million euros received by the manufacturer on 31 March 2005. Production of multiple units was at the Siemens plant in Krefeld- Uerdingen, while customer acceptance took place in Wegberg -Wildenrath. On 9 November 2007, the first two trains were officially unveiled in Bangkok. Previously, they were shipped from Bremerhaven to Laem Chabang in the district of Bang Lamung in Thailand on a 38 day trip. About 130 kilometers they were transported by road to a depot in Bangkok. A further four trains have been shipped in December 2007.
Express trainset
The four-part air-conditioned express train sets have three cars in a total of 164 seats in a 2 2 arrangement, six folding seats, a wheelchair space and a toilet. The fourth car serves as a luggage cart. The trains will be able to transport up to about 2,980 passengers per hour per direction. Outwardly have the trains on a white ground above and below the continuous dark gray window line ever a striking red stripes. The four Express trainsets were in June 2007 on its way to test drives in the test center Wildenrath.
City Line trainset
The three-piece air-conditioned City Line trainsets will carry with 150 bench seats in the longitudinal direction and calculated 595 standing room up to about 680 persons per hour per direction. Outwardly have the trains on a white ground above and below the continuous dark gray window line ever a striking blue stripes. It will operate five City Line trainsets.
Overall project
The consortium B.Grimm International Ltd.. and B.Grimm MBM Hong Kong Ltd.. manage the overall project, which Stecon ( Sino Thai Engineering and Construction Plc. ) is responsible for the construction of the line. The company Siemens TS is responsible for the design, supply and installation of electrical and mechanical systems of the entire project, including, but not vehicles, track construction, control and safety technology, telecommunication, automatic fare collection, tunnel equipment, power supply system and the check-in systems.
The cost of the entire project is 25.9 billion baht ( 600 million euros ) was estimated in January 2005. In March 2007, a funding gap of 18 billion baht has been revealed, the total cost is estimated now at 30 billion baht.
An original plan was to complete the route to November 2007. But it was only on 17 January 2009, the traction power supply had been put into operation, so that the next day began the first train with test drives up to 160 km / h between the Klong Ton Depot and Suvarnabhumi Airport. On 12 February 2009 a ride an express train for prominent guests took place, including the chairman of the state-owned railway company of the State Railway of Thailand ( SRT), Youtdana Tupcharoen, and the Thai Transport Minister Sophon Zarum belonged. The route of the Suvarnabhumi Airport Rail Link was completed in 2009 and put their complete railway systems in operation. Since January 2009, tests took place the infrastructure, which focused in particular signaling systems and automated baggage handling systems. After the public on several days, the connection between the airport and the station Phaya Thai had free use, normal, chargeable passenger operations started on 23 August 2010.
Route
The railway track, which runs on the Express and the City Line runs, elevated to about 93 percent, with about one kilometer is at ground level and the airport railway station is located underground. The maximum slope is four percent.
The Suvarnabhumi Airport Express Line ( unofficially called the Purple Line ) connects on 25.7 kilometers of the route the Suvarnabhumi Airport offers non-stop with the capital Bangkok. It operates at 45 -minute intervals between 6 and 24 clock clock; the journey time from the airport to the last stop in the Makkasan Railway Station is around 15 minutes. A single journey costs 90 baht, the round -trip 150 Baht per person. Another Express Line runs hourly to the end station Phaya Thai; the journey time is 19 minutes.
The running on the same track route Suvarnabhumi Airport City Line ( unofficial name: Red line ), however, extends to a length of 28.5 kilometers from the airport further into the inner city of Bangkok in and ends with six intermediate stops, at Phaya Thai station with the transit traffic in the Bangkok Skytrain. The journey time from the airport to Phaya Thai station is around 30 minutes. During the business hours which are as in the Express Line between 6 and midnight clock, trains CityLine every 15 minutes. As of December 31, 2010, the fare was on the City Line uniformly 15 baht per person, followed by a distance-based tariff from 15 to 45 baht has been introduced.
( PET, Thai: Sign สถานี เพชรบุรี ) At Makkasan station, called the City Air Terminal, changing from the City Line in the Express as well as in the underground of Bangkok MRT Phetchaburi station is possible. Here's a check-in for the airport is set up.
Drive operation is to be carried out by DB International GmbH, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn. This was also responsible for an installation of signaling equipment and staff training.