New EMU train of China-Laos Railway to serve Lao festival travel rush

VIENTIANE, April 10 (Xinhua) -- The third Lane Xang EMU train for the China-Laos Railway has arrived in the Lao capital Vientiane in order to serve the upcoming travel rush during the Lao New Year festival to be celebrated in mid-April.

The third Lane Xang high-speed EMU (electric multiple unit) train, which arrived in Vientiane on Saturday night, was manufactured in Qingdao in eastern China, according to the Laos-China Railway Company (LCRC), a joint venture running the railway's Lao section. The new train will run between Vientiane and Muangxay, a town in northern Laos.

Laos will celebrate Songkran or the Lao New Year from April 14 to 16. It is a very important traditional festival in the Southeast Asian country, and the Lao section of the China-Laos Railway will embrace its first festival travel rush since the start of its operation in last December.

In order to meet the various travel demands, the new EMU train has one more business class carriage and one more first class carriage, with economy class carriages reduced to five. Compared with the two Lane Xang EMU trains put into service earlier, the passenger carriage setting in the new train can vary and the interior decoration is upgraded, the LCRC said.

The LCRC told Xinhua on Sunday that since the railway was opened to traffic on Dec. 3 last year, the Lao section has seen a strong market demand. As of April 7, the Lao section had operated a total of 456 EMU train trips, transporting 236,800 passengers.

The company said it will continue to strengthen the management and service of passenger transport on the railway, including increasing the train frequency and improving ticket sale services.