Part of Thailand's northern train services suspended for track maintenance

UTTARADIT, THAILAND, September 13 (TNA) - The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) has announced that train services on part of the country's northern routes, from Uttaradit Province upward, will be suspended for 45 days, from September 16-October 30, 2013, for track maintenance for the sake of passengers’ safety. Poolsawasdi Oon-aimjai, chief of the Sila At train station in Uttaradit, confirmed the 45-day suspension of part of the northern train services on Friday. Due to the temporary track closure, Poolsawasdi told reporters, services of Express Train No. 1 and Train No. 13 between Bangkok and Chiang Mai will be suspended during the one-and-a-half-month period, but other northern train services will continue until they reach the Sila At station. According to the senior official, SRT staffs at the Sila At train station will arrange buses to send passengers to their farther northern destinations, but the bus service will be available only to those who book train tickets. About 90 per cent of passengers who booked tickets have, however, sought refunds and less than 10 per cent of them will board the northbound trains as scheduled. (TNA)