SE Asia HSR

A few months ago, someone I follow on social media posted about Laos (寮國) taking delivery of their first HSR train. My jaw hit the floor, because I had never in my life considered the possibility of HSR in SE Asia. But also Laos???? 

So I began to dive into this rabbit hole, and discovered there’s actually several plans for HSR systems in SE Asia. Of course there’s China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI or B&R, 一帶一路), but there’s also a plan put forward by ASEAN (東盟), of which China is also a member. There’s proposals to connect all of Asia with HSR, and there’s rumblings about connecting India, too. 

Thailand’s been doing extensive work on their infrastructure, rail, HSR and ports. And then there’s some interesting things going on with Malaysia and Singapore, who apparently made a deal, exchanged money, called off the deal, returned the money, and then one year later are discussing the deal again

Let’s start with Taiwan: How has Taiwan changed for the better or worse with our HSR? 

And then let’s move on to SE Asia: 

        Who benefits from transporation upgrades in SE Asia? 

        What’s better, highways or trains? 

        Is HSR better than standard rail trains? 

Relevant maps: 

2014 map of Thailand rail upgrades

Undated map of china high speed train network. Love how Taiwan is casually included...

Belt and Road Initiative Schematic Map

2014 Map of Existing Railways in Asia