Travelling in Thailand means discovering something special at every turn and the eastern coastline is no exception. With beautiful islands and beaches tucked away in provinces such as Pattaya, Chonburi and Rayong, you don’t even have to venture all the way south to find a seaside escape.
However, getting there from Bangkok's airports can still take hours by road. That's why, back in 2019, the Thai government launched an ambitious high-speed rail project designed to link these three major airports – Don Mueang, Suvarnabhumi, and U-Tapao – to improve access and cut travel times.
But just as things were picking up speed, the pandemic brought everything to a halt. The original public-private partnership (PPP) agreement, signed in October 2019, was disrupted by the global economic downturn. The private consortium leading the initiative, Asia Era One, faced financial setbacks due to shrinking confidence from lenders and the mounting risks of large-scale infrastructure investments. As a result, key obligations, including payments for the rights to operate the Airport Rail Link (ARL) couldn’t be met.
Still, that wasn’t the end of the line. Over the past few years, the government and its private partners have been working behind the scenes to revise the terms and address financial challenges to get the plan back on track.
Now, after nearly five years, there's finally light at the end of the tunnel. In March 2025, the State Railway of Thailand board approved a revised joint investment deal, aligned with guidelines from the Eastern Economic Corridor Policy Committee. If all goes according to plan, the updated contract will be signed in July 2025, paving the way for construction to begin.
Service is expected to launch sometime between 2029 and 2030, making transportation across the country’s key regions faster, easier and more connected than ever.
