Railway service connecting the provincial capitals of Battambang and Banteay Meanchey provinces was launched last Sunday, following the opening of a 48-kilometer track between the border town of Poipet and Serey Saophoan on April 4. The 65-kilometer new line from Serey Saophoan to Battambang will be free for passengers until the end of July and will take about two and a half hours to complete. With Poipet and Battambang now connected by rail, the Ministry of Transportation plans to open a 107-km stretch of track from Battambang to Pursat on May 29, before moving on to work on the 134-km stretch of track from Pursat to Bat Doeng in Kampong Speu’s Oudong district. The total cost to rehabilitate the train track from Poipet to Bat Doeng was estimated at $76.6mn, with $13mn coming from the Asian Development Bank and the rest coming from government coffers, according to Transport Minister Sun Chanthol. The passenger service from Phnom Penh to the Thai border at Poipet is set to be available by the end of the year, the minister said. Additionally, the minister mentioned that new railway tracks—from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap, Siem Reap to Poipet, and Phnom Penh to Bavet on the Vietnam border—were also being studied by private companies. (Source: Phnom Penh Post)