Phnom Penh’s Airport Shuttle Fails to Attract Travelers, Despite Increasing Road Traffic
20 November 2019
PHNOM PENH — The Phnom Penh airport shuttle has had a slow start over the last 18 months. And that has nothing to do with its top speed of 25 kilometers per hour.

One morning in July, the train’s engines were rumbling, ready for the early morning ride. The blowing of the horn signaled it would shortly begin the 10-kilometer journey from the Royal Railway Station in the center of the city to the Phnom Penh International Airport.

But, there were no passengers occupying the blue, white and yellow striped carriages for the 7 a.m. ride.

“The train still takes off even without any passengers,” said 60-year-old train driver Choeng Chanthy.

The airport shuttle is part of a project to revive Cambodia’s degraded network of railway tracks. Apart from the airport service, there are weekend passenger services that run from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville, and more recently, the tracks have been upgraded to allow for services to Banteay Meanchey province, extending all the way to Bangkok, Thailand.

The railway concession is run by Royal Railways, which is owned by prominent business tycoon Kith Meng. However, the airport shuttle has struggled to attract passengers or residents looking to beat the traffic on streets leading towards the airport.

John Guiry, CEO of Royal Railways, said the airport service needed to be advertised better and to a wider customer base, because it was a convenient option for travelers looking to beat the traffic.

He said the company should also target Phnom Penh residents, rather than only air passengers, to use the service for their daily commutes.

“The traffic, especially along Russian Boulevard is so terrible. People need one to two hours to arrive at the airport,” Guiry said. “However, now we need only 30 minutes to get there [on the train].”

Guiry’s pitch for using the train service is finding some resonance with travelers.

Raksmey Chea Chandara, one of only two passengers traveling on an airport shuttle in July, stepped off the train with his suitcase and a cold drink in hand, ready to board a flight to Laos.

“There wasn't any traffic jam when using the train,” Chea Chandara said. “The traffic jams are now really bad. That's why I wanted to try riding the train and it was nice.”

However, with a single line operating in the city, it could be hard to convince daily commuters to use the service. A more connected public transport infrastructure would help drive more residents to use the airport service.
https://www.voacambodia.com/a/phnom-pen ... 73860.html

CEOCambodiaNews wrote: ↑Thu Nov 21, 2019 12:39 pm Phnom Penh’s Airport Shuttle Fails to Attract Travelers, Despite Increasing Road Traffic
20 November 2019
PHNOM PENH — The Phnom Penh airport shuttle has had a slow start over the last 18 months. And that has nothing to do with its top speed of 25 kilometers per hour.

One morning in July, the train’s engines were rumbling, ready for the early morning ride. The blowing of the horn signaled it would shortly begin the 10-kilometer journey from the Royal Railway Station in the center of the city to the Phnom Penh International Airport.

But, there were no passengers occupying the blue, white and yellow striped carriages for the 7 a.m. ride.

“The train still takes off even without any passengers,” said 60-year-old train driver Choeng Chanthy.

The airport shuttle is part of a project to revive Cambodia’s degraded network of railway tracks. Apart from the airport service, there are weekend passenger services that run from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville, and more recently, the tracks have been upgraded to allow for services to Banteay Meanchey province, extending all the way to Bangkok, Thailand.

The railway concession is run by Royal Railways, which is owned by prominent business tycoon Kith Meng. However, the airport shuttle has struggled to attract passengers or residents looking to beat the traffic on streets leading towards the airport.

John Guiry, CEO of Royal Railways, said the airport service needed to be advertised better and to a wider customer base, because it was a convenient option for travelers looking to beat the traffic.

He said the company should also target Phnom Penh residents, rather than only air passengers, to use the service for their daily commutes.

“The traffic, especially along Russian Boulevard is so terrible. People need one to two hours to arrive at the airport,” Guiry said. “However, now we need only 30 minutes to get there [on the train].”

Guiry’s pitch for using the train service is finding some resonance with travelers.

Raksmey Chea Chandara, one of only two passengers traveling on an airport shuttle in July, stepped off the train with his suitcase and a cold drink in hand, ready to board a flight to Laos.

“There wasn't any traffic jam when using the train,” Chea Chandara said. “The traffic jams are now really bad. That's why I wanted to try riding the train and it was nice.”

However, with a single line operating in the city, it could be hard to convince daily commuters to use the service. A more connected public transport infrastructure would help drive more residents to use the airport service.
https://www.voacambodia.com/a/phnom-pen ... 73860.html

Quote ] People need one to two hours to arrive at the airport,” Guiry said. “However, now we need only 30 minutes to get there [on the train].”



He has not taken into account the time he spent traveling to the train station or the time in waiting for the train Depending on where you start your journey will depend on weather the train will be quicker.

Only makes sense if you stay close to the trainstation. Also people who are staying in bkk1, tonle bassac or toul toumpong only have to use a short stretch of russian blv.
When flying early morning or after 9pm the traffic is actually not really bad.

man, if this goes through, Cambodia will actually beat the Philippines.

I tried the train. Once each way. Will never do it again.

When it only runs once every 90 minutes, you are still much better off by taking the bus and sitting in traffic. Plus, the bus follows a much more convenient route, with many stops across the city in addition to being a lot cheaper.

I would love to take the train. I simply can't find a single, justifiable reason to do it. It's more expensive for less convenience. Only advantage is never having to worry about getting a seat. The No. 3 bus can get very crowded at times.

By the time I have paid for a tuk to fight through the traffic to get to the station and paid for the train it works out half the cost and at least twice the time. Thats without having to get two bags in and out of the train. I am not that desperate to save $4 so i take a tuk from my apartment.
Tourist just dont stay near the station and the traffic is horrific to get from there to BKK1,BKK2, Olympic, Rusian market or even riverside which is where most hotels and apartments are. If only there were baht buses running those routes

First you don't have to save 4 $ on a TukTuk and then you want Bahtbusses, lol.
Nothing better than having a thieving ladyboy or a drunk russian sitting next to you on the way to the airport.