Cambodia has  of  metre gauge rail network, consisting of two lines: one from the capital Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville, and another from Phnom Penh to Poipet on the Thai border.
The lines were originally constructed during the time when the country was part of French Indochina, but due to neglect and damage from civil war during the latter half of the 20th century, the railways were in a dilapidated state and all services had been suspended by 2009.
Through rehabilitation efforts by the Government of Cambodia, with funding from the Asian Development Bank, Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and Australian company Toll Holdings, freight and limited passenger service returned between Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville by 2016, and passenger service between Phnom Penh and Poipet was fully restored in 2019.
History
French colonial era
Before the Phnom Penh – Poipet railway was built in the 1930s, a  railway line connecting Phnom Krom with Siem Reap was originally built by the French in the 1890s.
The French colonial government built the first line, running from Phnom Penh to Poipet on the Thai border, between 1930 and 1940, with Phnom Penh Railway Station opening in 1932.
The final connection with Thailand was completed by Royal State Railways in 1942.
However, the service from Bangkok to Battambang was suspended when the French Indochinese Government resumed sovereignty over Battambang and the Sisophon area from Thailand on 17 December 1946, as Thailand was seen as a supporter of Khmer Issarak, the anti-French, Khmer nationalist political movement.
;RouteOxford World Atlas, Oxford University Press, 1973, page 65 Phnom Penh – Pursat – Moung Ruessei – Battambang – Sisophon – Poipet Late 20th century
In 1955 Australia donated rolling stock, described as "railway wagons of various types", worth at the time AUS£ 441,000 and "needed for new rail links."
The Central Queensland Herald, Rolling Stock: Australian Gift to Cambodia, 11 August 2012 Assistance from France, West Germany, and the United Kingdom between 1960 and 1969 supported the construction of the second line, which runs from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville on the southern coast to cut down the reliance on Saigon Port of Vietnam and Khlong Toei Port of Thailand.
In 1960, Australia provided four third-class passenger carriages under the Colombo Plan.Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, March, 1960 pp39-40 Rail service ceased during the war but resumed in the early 1980s.
Guerrilla activities, however, continued to disrupt service.
21st century
thumb|Railway Station – Phnom Penh 2012|right
thumb|right|Opening in April 2016 By 2008 the service between Phnom Penh and Battambang had been reduced from daily to weekly service due to the lack of funds to maintain the tracks and rolling stock.
Even the new diesel-electric locomotives from China could not run on the tracks due to the dilapidated condition.
Derailing of trains in operation was not infrequent.
As reported by the Phnom Penh Post in October 2008, the national railway earned merely $2 million per year; the annual freight amount stood at 350,000, and the passenger count at 500,000.Ailing railway set for upgrade.
The Phnom Penh Post, 29 October 2008.
The last regular rail service in Cambodia between Phnom Penh and Battambang was suspended entirely in early 2009.
In June 2009, Australian business Toll Holdings was awarded the contract to begin reconstruction of Cambodia's rail network and to operate it once complete.Cambodian rail concession signed  Railway Gazette International, 12 June 2009 It is envisioned that this line would reopen by mid-2013, together with the track further west to the Thai border, allowing for direct rail services into Cambodia from Bangkok for the first time in over 60 years.
The Australian government and the Asian Development Bank was said to spend $26 million to help rebuild Cambodia's rail system, the majority of the Northern and Southern lines in Cambodia.
The project, if all up, would cost $143 million, with the disruption exposed in a report by the international consortium funding the $143 million project – Australia's international aid agency AusAID and the Asian Development Bank.
641 kilometers of track will be rehabilitated with the aim of integrating Cambodia with the regional network such as Vietnam and Thailand; however, about 1,400 families who are living in shanty towns, have been affected and 1050 families have had to move.
The report which was prepared by AusAID and Asian Development Bank experts in April 2012 pointed out poor construction and botched surveys leading to evictions of families, infighting between contractors, delays and cost overruns.
In March 2012, Toll said that it would suspend its involvement in the railway project due to delays, caused by lack of equipment, 2011's flood rains, and the resettlement of thousands of Cambodians.
The line from Phnom Penh to the deep water port at Sihanoukville was also scheduled to be reopened in 2011.
However, the company came back in late July and said it will start transporting construction materials needed to build the southern line from 1 August.
Toll Holdings sold its 55% stake in 2014 to Royal Group, with the company renamed Royal Railway Cambodia.Toll Group pulls out of Cambodia International Railway Journal February 2015 page 6
In June 2012, Cambodia discussed with China on funding for a 250-kilometre stretch of rail line between Cambodia and Vietnam.
Var Sim Sorya, director general of Ministry of Public Works and Transportation said: "China doesn’t have so many conditions, but Chinese technicians are still well-studied," he said yesterday at a workshop on infrastructure, although he did not specify which conditions were undesirable.
In 2013, China Railway Group planned to build a  north–south railway across Cambodia, which would support planned expansion of the steel industry in Cambodia.
The line between Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville opened to travellers on April 9, 2016, after having been suspended for 14 years.
The line between the Thai border at Poipet and Battambang was under reconstruction as of 2017, with the remainder of the line between Battambang and Phnom Penh planned to be reconstructed at a cost of $150 million.
It was announced in March 2018 that the line from Poipet to Sisophon would begin operations on April 4, 2018.
Subsequently, operations were further extended to Battambang on 29 April, with plans to open the line to Pursat on 29 May.
It was also reported that new railway routes were being studied by private companies.
In 2020, transport undersecretary of state Ly Borin announced a feasibility study of the railway from Phnom Penh to Bavet at the Vietnamese border.
In May 2019, by request of the Prime Minister, Hun Sen, a team from China Railway Construction Corporation arrived in Cambodia to conduct feasibility studies on railway upgrades, including bridge and track repairs, double tracking, electrification, Siem Reap  Phnom Penh (via Battambang and Pursat) high-speed railway corridor, Koh Kong  Prey Nob (via Botum Sakor and Sre Ambel) high-speed railway corridor and light rail system construction in Phnom Penh.
Statistics
Historical
;Royal Cambodian RailwaysSampson, H. (General Editor)
, The Dumpy Book of Railways of the World, Sampson Low, London, c. 1956, page 171
Date: c. 1956
Route: Connections with railways in Thailand and Vietnam
Gauge:
Route length: 242 miles
Locomotives: 23 – it appears that 19 of these still exist and one (RRC No. 231-501 4-6-2) is operational
Locomotives
CSR Qishuyan Locomotive Company of China has supplied diesel-electric locomotives of type CKD6D to Cambodia Royal Railway.
These are 880 kW Bo-Bo locomotives with Caterpillar CAT3508B diesel engines.
Cambodia Royal Railway will purchase diesel-hydraulic locomotive from INKA in November 2019.
Railway links with adjacent countries
Thailand – yes – same gauge
Laos – no – same gauge  – indirectly via Thailand
Vietnam – no – under construction – same gauge
Timeline
2006
Trans-Asian Railway network planned -
Link proposed  Aranyaprathet, Thailand to  Sisophon, Cambodia
Malaysia offer to donate rails and sleepers to Cambodia, to help them complete the missing links, which would be of value to all countries in the vicinity.
17 November 2006 – To complete a missing link in the Singapore-Kunming rail route, Malaysia has donated rails to Cambodia which will be used to connect Poipet to Sisophon (48 km).Intelligence  Railway Gazette International April 2005  According to Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy, the rail was lifted from the old Rawang-Ipoh section where a new electrified double line has been built.
A link between Cambodia and Vietnam including a crossing of the Mekong River is still required.
The completed Singapore-Kunming line is expected to promote increased trade with China.
16 December 2006 – The Asian Development Bank is advancing a loan together with the donation in kind of rails from Malaysia will see restoration of the link with Thailand.
2007
ADB and OPEC agree to lend $80m for  Aranyaprathet to  Sisophon link with completion in 2010.International Railway Journal December 2007 p4
$500m is needed for another 254 km link from  Phnom Penh to  Lộc Ninh.
2008
November, 2008 – agreement for Vietnam – Cambodia linkCambodia-Vietnam agreement brings Trans-Asian railway closer GoKunming, 10 November 2008
October–November: A 30-year agreement is prepared with Australia's Toll Holdings to upgrade the national railway system, restore the link from the present western railhead at Sisophon  to the Thai railhead at Poipet, and to construct a new 225-km line linking Cambodian railways to the Vietnamese railhead of Lộc Ninh.
The renovation of the existing lines, to be carried out in 50 km segments, is expected to take 2–3 years.
The link to Vietnam would involve construction of two major bridges: one across the Tonlé Sap River, and another across the Mekong River in Kampong Cham Province.
The Cambodian government is hoping to get assistance from China to finance the project.
2009
June 12 Toll Holdings and Royal Group sign concession agreement.
2010
October Touk Meas to Phnom Penh reopens for freight.
2012
March Toll Holdings publicly announced that it would suspend its work for a year due to refurbishment delays.
August 1 the company started transporting construction materials to build the Southern line.
2014
July 25 a ground-breaking ceremony was held in Poipet as work to reinstate the cross-border railway to Thailand was begun.
2015
August work is expected to begin on rehabilitation of the line between Phnom Penh and Sisophon.
2016
April 9 – Opening to travellers of the line Phnom Penh and the South (Sihanoukville, Kampot).
2018
April 4 – Opening of the line between Poipet and Sisophon
April 29 – Extension of service from Sisophon to Battambang
May 29 – (scheduled) Extension of service from Battambang to Pursat
July 4 – Extension of service from Pursat to Phnom Penh
2019
April 22 – Resumption of cross-border rail service between Poipet and Aranyaprathet.
2020
(unknown) – Indefinite suspension of cross-border rail service at Poipet, due to COVID-19.
(unknown) – Permanent closure of Airport rail shuttle.
(October) – Feasibility study underway for railway between Phnom Penh and Bavet.
Bamboo Railway
thumb|Bamboo train (Norry) station near Battambang|right The Bamboo railway as it is known to overseas visitors, "norry" or "lorries" as it is known to locals, was a popular form of transport in the Northwestern area of the country near Battambang.
The trains consist of a bamboo-covered platform and two detached axles with wheels.
They run on regular tracks and are powered with scavenged engines, such as Briggs & Stratton type air-cooled gasoline engines adapted from portable electricity generators, or from water pumps Power is transmitted by belt and pulley.
Trains can reach up to 40 km/h.
When meeting traffic in the opposite direction, passengers of the cart with fewer passengers are expected to lift the platform, engine, and axles of their cart off the tracks to let the other cart pass.
See also
List of railway stations in Cambodia
Phnom Krom railway
Transport in Cambodia
References
External links
Royal Railways (Cambodia) website
Toll Royal Railways – Cambodian rail operator
Railway map – Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia
Photos of Battambang railway station
Photos of Kampot railway station
Photo of Pursat railway station
Photos of Sihanoukville railway station
Photo of Sisophon railway station
Photo of Takéo railway station
