1855, Pauling, the special envoy of Queen Victoria of England, came to Thailand. He brought a small toy train as a gift from the Queen to King Rama IV. This small train is equipped with rails and is fully equipped, just like a real train. Rama IV and his ministers were very interested in this. Perhaps this is the first time that Thais have seen the "train". Queen Victoria hopes to convey her wish to Rama IV through this gift, that is, to build a railway system in Thailand extending from the Andaman Sea to the Gulf of Thailand, thus shortening the trade route between Malaysia Peninsula and other regions; However, Rama IV, who resolutely resisted colonial rule, declined Queen Victoria's request on the grounds that Thailand's economy and population were not enough to build a railway. Nevertheless, Rama IV finally signed the Pauling Treaty with the British delegation, which completely opened the door of Thailand's closed door and forced Thailand to embark on the road of reform to learn from western countries.
Rama V ascended the throne in 1868, and took power in 1873. Although the British request to Rama IV failed in 1855, Queen Victoria did not give up her railway plan. Britain, which hoped to establish itself in Thailand, once again proposed to Rama V that the British East India Company would help Thailand build a railway, but Rama V did not want to build a railway at the expense of national independence, so he rejected the British proposal for reasons similar to his father's. Rama V has traveled to many European countries and has a deep understanding of the importance of railways. He realized that building a railway could reduce the pressure imposed on Thailand by colonial powers and show the world that Thailand is a progressive developing country. Rama V's real dream is to build a railway connecting Bangkok and Chiang Mai. To this end, he consulted railway engineers in many European countries and made many plans. To 1888, he entrusted British engineers to study and survey the railway route. 189 1 year, Rama V officially issued a royal decree, announcing the construction of the Bangkok-Chiang Mai Railway (now the northern line of the national railway of Thailand).
Thailand has four main railway lines, extending from Bangkok to the north, east, south and northeast, with a train speed of only 60 kilometers per hour. Thailand Railway has a history of 1 14 years. More than 200 locomotives and most of the cars in use are about 20 years old. The Thai government has formulated a railway development plan of 20 10-20 15, and plans to invest170 billion baht to update locomotives, carriages and supporting equipment by 25% in five years.