This morning I decided to go and test out the new Airport Rail Link that runs between Suvarnabhumi Airport and Bangkok. As usual, I was live blogging on www.RichardBarrow.com with highlights on my Twitter account. Click here for the map of the route.
At the moment they are only doing trial runs for the City Line. Not all stations are open. However, it is free so we cannot complain. I started my journey from BTS Phaya Thai. Eventually there will be a connecting skybridge that will take you to the train station. At the moment you have to go down to street level first.
As was to be expected everything was very efficient at the station. They even had these monitors that switched between Thai and English giving you a countdown to the next departure, As you can see, I had only 93 seconds. They were very punctual in leaving. They didn’t even stop for someone running for the train.
Inside it is quite spacious and there are areas for baggage. I am sure once it is launched there will be advertising stuck everywhere! The air-conditioning was good to start with but as the windows had no tinting I soon started to sweat! I guess if the sun was directly overhead then it wouldn’t be so bad.
At the moment, they are only doing test runs Monday to Fridays from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. and in the afternoon from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. There are also only two stops along the way. However, once the service is fully open, we think in August, the express train will go non-stop from Makkasan Station to the airport in only 15 minutes. The commuter train will stop at all stations along the route and will probably take about 30 minutes.
The route is 28.6 km long and took us only 19 minutes to arrive at the airport which wasn’t bad. Certainly faster than a taxi. They say there will be luggage check-in at Makkasan Station also so you won’t even need to carry your bags. Full price of the tickets is 150 baht each which is probably alright if there are only one or two of you. But, you might also want to consider a taxi which would cost about 150-300 baht.
Just before I arrived, one of my followers on Twitter asked if there was any good wheelchair access. I had already noted a lift from the platform up to the ticket area at the airport station. I also spotted these extra wide ticket barriers that had wheelchair stickers on them. So, this end is certainly wheelchair-friendly.
Overall it was a good and efficient ride. However, I am not sure if it is really worth it as once you get to Makkasan Station you still have to find a taxi to take you to your hotel. You might find it cheaper and easier just to take a taxi all the way from the airport straight to the front door of your hotel.
- Posted from my iPhone
better than KFC and McDonalds lol but the name...
Jessen Felix
20/06/2010 at 6:09 pm
Thanks for the write up on the train service to the airport….will be checking it out one of these days.
Jan and Hanneke van der Linde
22/06/2010 at 7:31 pm
And some more inforamtion about the MRT.
Jan and Hanneke van der Linde
22/06/2010 at 7:32 pm
Some access information about the BTS.
Brinley Waddell
22/06/2010 at 9:03 pm
Tried the service today and discovered that its a definite DONT USE if you have luggage with you. At the Airport they dont allow trolleys past the station ticket barriers. At Phayathai, no trolleys and I struggled down 2 flights of stairs to avoid the queues at the lifts that are very small.
Zoowatch
20/07/2010 at 5:13 am
The Suvarnabhumi Airport Rail Link is opening 23/08/2010.
Ride from the Airport to Phaya Thai BTS will cost 20 baht on the City Line, or 10 baht if you travel only 1 to 7 stations.
The Express Line will cost more at 50 baht from Suvarnabhumi to Makkasan. These are promotional fares expected to last until the end of 2010, and there’s a high likelihood of that being extended until mid-2011.
The Express Line and City Line trains departs every 15 and 20 minutes, respectively. The Express train offers larger storage space for luggage and bicycles + toilet.
The check-in facilities at Makkasan Station is not expected to operate until the State Railway finishes the setting up of subsidiary company ‘SRTET’ expected by the end of 2010. THAI is keen to set up city check-in facilities right from the beginning, and may extend such service to Star Alliance passengers at a later date. The airline expects city check-in passengers to pay for the Express Line ride to Suvarnabhumi himself.
Modifications are being made to Phaya Thai BTS station at the moment and should be ready by 23/08 to allow direct connection with the ARL station (passengers need not go to the ground level for transfers).
Zoowatch
20/07/2010 at 5:19 am
Khun Brinley Waddell
SRT has promised to relax the luggage rules once the ARL is fully operational. Right now, it is just a trial.
Small, cabin-size baggage is okay for City Line trains.
Larger luggage only allowed on Express Line trains.
Trolley service is only provided at Makksan Station.