Laotian railway station opened in 2021
Vientiane railway station (Lao: ສະຖານີ ນະຄອນຫລວງວຽງຈັນ, Chinese: 万象站) is a railway station in Vientiane, Laos. It is the second station on the Boten–Vientiane railway.[1] The largest and most important station on the line,[2] the station was opened along with the rest of the line on 3 December 2021.[3]
Design
Located 15 km northeast of central Vientiane,[4] the station building sits on 14,543 square metres (156,540 sq ft) of land and has three platforms and five tracks as well as a station hall that can accommodate 2,500 passengers.[2]
The station's theme is the City of Sandalwood, reflecting the original meaning of "Vientiane". The building is based on traditional Chinese architecture combined with Laotian environmental characteristics. The facade features eight tree-branch-shaped eaves, meant to evoke a tropical rainforest.[5]
Services
As of April 2023, the station has four services per day: two via Luang Prabang to Boten at the Chinese border, one to Luang Prabang only and one to Kunming South.[6]
Future expansion
All tracks at the station are standard gauge, so the station does not serve the existing narrow-gauge railway from Thailand to Laos, which terminates at Thanaleng railway station, some 15 km to the south. The standard gauge Bangkok–Nong Khai high-speed railway, scheduled for completion in 2028, may eventually extend to Vientiane station, completing the Kunming–Singapore railway.[7]
In 2022, the Vientiane Times announced that Laos intends to build a new standard-gauge railway from Vientiane to the port of Vung Ang in central Vietnam.[8]
