The Red Line will be the first of the country's planned expansion of the metropolitan mass-transit system to open for bidding, expected early next year, a Transport Ministry source said last week.

Since the Red Line project belongs to the State Railway of Thailand, construction of the 20-kilometre Rangsit-Bang Sue section does not come under the Joint State and Private Investment Act of 1992.

The Blue and Purple lines will be developed by the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand, so they will need at least another year to prepare for bidding under the act.

"Now the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning is studying the blueprint for the Red Line and its terms of reference," the source said.

According to the office's feasibility study, the Red Line project will be divided into two phases - infrastructure and train operation. The government will invest in the stations, depots and railways while a company will run the line on a concession. The operator will have to purchase the same rolling stock and signalling system as is used in the Chaloem Ratchamongkhon subway line operated by Bangkok Metro Plc (BMCL).

The source said the government must draw a clear picture of its airport policy - whether the country will use only Suvarnabhumi Airport or both Suvarnabhumi and the old airport at Don Muang for commercial flight operations.

If the country needs both airports, the Red Line will have to be extended from Bang Sue to Makkasan, which is the city terminal of the express train to Suvarnabhumi.

The Red Line is one of five mass-transit projects with a total length of 118 kilometres recently approved by the government with an investment budget over the 2006-2012 period of Bt165.4 billion.

For the Green Line - an extension of the Skytrain's Sukhumvit Line from Mor Chit to Saphan Mai and from On Nuj to Sam Rong and Samut Prakan - the sections would depend on the readiness of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, the source said.

Bidding on the Hua Lamphong-Bang Kae and Bang Sue-Tha Phra sections of the Blue Line, and the Bang Sue-Bang Yai section of the Purple Line, might take a year, following the Act, but still might take place during this government's term, the source said.

"To apply the same standard, all rail routes should use two contracts - for construction and train operation," the source said.

According to industry observers, the existing operators - Bangkok Mass Transit System Plc and BMCL, which operate the Skytrain and the subway respectively - stand the best chance of winning the bidding this time around, although the government has given assurances that the mega-projects are open freely for any bidder.

Under the bidding terms, the government will consider companies that can connect the new lines to the old routes efficiently and effectively, the source added.

Watcharapong Thongrung

The Nation