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The Cabinet approved double-tracking for Chumphon–Surat Thani, Surat Thani–Hat Yai Junction and Hat Yai Junction–Padang Besar, fully state-funded, though costs rose and the Hat Yai–Songkhla section was postponed.
On 1 September 2026 the Cabinet held a mobile meeting in Songkhla, on the Hat Yai campus of Prince of Songkla University, and approved the second phase of southern double-tracking for three sections that run from Chumphon down through Surat Thani and Hat Yai Junction to the Padang Besar border point, together worth about THB107 billion.
Under the Cabinet's figures, Chumphon–Surat Thani is about THB36.9 billion over seven years (fiscal 2026–2032). Surat Thani–Hat Yai Junction is about THB61.5 billion over eight years (fiscal 2026–2033), and Hat Yai Junction–Padang Besar about THB8.4 billion over six years (fiscal 2026–2031).
The three sections cover roughly 168, 291 and 45 kilometres, about 504 kilometres in total.
The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) will carry the projects forward with the government bearing the full cost. Next, SRT drafts the tender terms, initially expected to split the civil works into four contracts.
In Hat Yai, some stretches change from at-grade track to a viaduct of about 3 kilometres and an embankment of about 2 kilometres, so the line copes better with floods.
Costs have not stood still: Chumphon–Surat Thani rose from about THB30.4 billion proposed to the Cabinet in 2025 to about THB36.9 billion.
The Hat Yai Junction–Songkhla section, about THB15.9 billion, is postponed until encroachers are removed from railway land.
The Cabinet also gave in-principle approval to three more phase-two routes, Pak Nam Pho–Den Chai, Den Chai–Chiang Mai and Thanon Chira Junction–Ubon Ratchathani, but SRT must update its information before final approval, so these are not fully green-lit.
If you are looking at locations along the line, follow the tender and land-acquisition steps, because the real timetable depends on them.
Written by the NextSpace+ team from the sources listed below, not copied from them. For information only, not investment advice.
Figures and dates checked against the original sources on 11 October 2026
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The Royal Gazette has published the 2026–2037 national spatial policy plan, setting development roles for each region, backing development around transit stations and setting infrastructure targets.
