It is the 8th bus route linking Thailand and Laos.

Transport ministry deputy permanent secretary, Silapachai Jarukasemrattana, presided over the opening ceremony at the Chiang Mai Arcade Bus Terminal, declaring the service would “promote tourism and investment between the two countries.”

Wat Xieng Thong, LuangPrabang

The route operates with a so-called “ second-class” bus that departs daily from Chiang Mai to Chiang Khong district  in Chiang Rai province where it stops to pick up passengers before crossing the  Mekong River by ferry from the Chiang Khong-Bor Kaew Pier.

Once in Laos, Na Laung Company provides a bus to Luang Namta, Udomxai, and Luang Prabang. The journey from Chiang Khong to Luang Prabang covers  500 km on pot-holed  hill country roads.

Private cars do the trip from the river to Luang Prabang in two days, making Luang Namtha the overnight stop and a welcome break from the difficult driving conditions.

Chiang Mai is 320 km southwest of Chiang Kong.

The 44-seat bus takes 18 hours to cover the entire trip. The one-way fare costs Bt1,200.

However, once the 4th Thai-Laos Friendship bridge opens in 2013 connecting Chiang Khong with Huay Xai in Laos the bus service will be upgraded to first-class and the fare will increase to Bt1,500 one-way.

The new route is a result of cooperation between the Department of Land Transport of Thailand and the Department Public Works and Transport of Laos.

Other bus routes are:

• Udon Thani-Vientiane;

• Nong Khai- Vientiane;

• Ubon Ratchathani-Pakse in Champasak district;

• Mukdahan-Savannakhet;

• Khon Kaen- Vientiane;

• Nakhon Ratchasima- Vientiane;

• Nakhon Phanom-Thakaek in Khammouane province.

“The bridge should open in 2012, but work has been delayed slightly due to project financing that slowed down after the global financial crisis,” the 4th Mekong River Bridge Construction Project deputy head, Thavone Vorabouth told Vientiane Times.

The bridge will span the river between two districts; Chiang Khong in Chiang Rai province, Thailand and Huayxai in Bokeo province, Laos.

If all goes well with the financing the project should open in mid-2013.

Mr Thavone said construction on the Lao side of the bridge in Bokeo province was continuing.

The bridge is part of the Greater Mekong sub-region north-south economic corridor project. It will connect Donsavan village in Huayxai district in Bokeo province with Ing village in Chiang Khong district of Thailand’s Chiang Rai province.

The bridge will facilitate land transport to Kunming in China using the R3A Highway which is about 9 km from the bridge. The distance from Chiang Rai to Kunming is around 1030 km.

However, road conditions on the R3A have deteriorated due to heavy trucks and topography which is very hilly in parts, making the route a challenge for leisure travellers.

The 4th Mekong River Bridge Construction Project is jointly funded by Thailand and China involving a US$44.8 million investment, shared equally. The Lao and Thai governments are each contributing 50% of the construction cost.

When completed, the bridge will be 630 metres long (480 metres over the river) and 14.7 metres wide. The project also includes the construction of 11 km road (5 km on the Thai side and 6 km on Lao side); a common control area and traffic direction change point.

CR5-KT Group of China and Krung Thon Engineering of Thailand are jointly building the bridge and support facilities.

Thailand’s Princess, Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, presided over the opening of the bridge, 11 November, at a ceremony attended by high ranking government officials from both Thailand and Laos.

The Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge, connects the northeastern Thai province of Nakhon Phanom with Khammouan province in central Lao PDR.

Officials said it would help to boost tourism and trade and reduce the transport delivery times for cargo between the two countries.

The opening ceremony took place at the Thai-Lao border and was co-chaired bythe vice president of Laos,  Bounnhang Vorachith.

Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra also attended the event.

Princess Sirindhorn also inaugurated a border pass building where an exhibition on close ties between the two neighbours is now on display.

Thailand and Laos have inked an agreement to jointly develop the economy in border areas under the theme ‘twin city’. The friendship bridge is also part of the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy.

The ‘twin city’ concept is already working in two other border areas where friendship bridges opened — the first in 1994 linking Vientiane in Laos with Nong Khai province in Thailand and the second in 2006 linking Mukdahan province in Thailand with Savannakhet in Laos.

The first bridge was funded by the Australian government , while other bridges have been financed by grants and loans from Thailand and China.

The third friendship bridge is part of Asian Highway Route AH15, connecting Thailand’s Udon Thani province to Vinh in Vietnam.

The Thai government funded the construction of the third bridge with a budget of Bt1,723 million (US$57 million), while the Lao government provided land and tax privileges for the import of construction machines and materials.

The Thai construction company, Italian-Thai,  started construction in 2009 on the two-lane friendship bridge. It spans 1,423 metres with a road width of 13 metres.

The construction of the Thai-Lao friendship bridge should improve cooperation between the two countries, as well build a economic corridor to Vietnam.

The bridge was commercially in business 12 November when the first group of travellers paid Bt50 each for private cars to make the crossing. Cars of seven to 12 seats are charged Bt100, while medium-sized passenger cars with 12 to 24 seats are charged Bt150 Buses pay Bt200 if they have 24 seats or more.

In addition, the province has assigned the Transport Co Ltd to introduce an international bus route from Nakhon Phanom to Khammouan.

It takes one hour and a half for the bus  to complete the 29 km transfer between the two provinces and the fare costs Bt70 per person (18,000 Kips). Buses operate daily 0730 to 1800.

There is no provision for people to walk or cycle across the bridge. Cycles have to be stored on buses or in cars to cross the bridge.

Nakhon Phanom Chamber of Commerce vice president, Jit Jirachat told TTR Weekly that officials in Nakhon Phanom province were discussing with their counterparts in Khammouan Province to allow tourist buses from both provinces to cross the bridge and run their own independent services between the two province outside of the arrangement for the official bus service.

He said Laos should give an answer on the proposal by end of this month.

The bridge is part of Asian Development Bank’s East-West corridor project that envisages a road link from Myanmar passing through Thailand and Laos to Vietnam’s central region.

Most of the route is on Highway 12 that meets a new road leading to the bridge about 8 km north of Nakhon Phanom.

Once across the river the bridge  road links with highway 13 in Laos north of Tha Khaek. At present tankers and commercial vehicles use a ferry that crosses from the town centre of Nakhon Phanom to Tha Khaek.

The downtown ferries will continue to serve Lao and Thai citizens only, while all commercial vehicles and buses will use the bridge.

Last year, 19,850 Thais passed Nakhon Phanom Immigration checkpoint, while there were 55,302 international tourists excluding border pass travellers.

Meanwhile, Khammouan province deputy governor Somchay Phetsinuan said the opening of the bridge should improve tourist arrivals. On average, there are 300,000 tourist arrivals to the  province annually.

“The bridge connects Hom village in Meuang district of Thailand’s Nakhon Phanom province to Veun Tai village, 13 km from Tha Khaek. It now provides the shortest route for exporters trucking goods to the central seaports of Vietnam.”

Mr Somchay added: “ The bridge will now be the main international border crossing. The previous immigration checkpoint will be used only to process Lao and Thai nationals making short excursions. Everyone else will need to use the border checkpoints at the bridge.”

The bridge supports the Lao government’s policy to transform the country from a “landlocked to a land linked nation”, to bolster trade, investment and tourism.

Khammuan provincial authorities are now planning a new road as well as an upgrade of Highway 13 to improve links with Vietnam.

There are two other Lao-Thai Friendship Bridges across the Mekong. The first connects Nong Khai province in Thailand with Vientiane in Laos and the second connects Mukdahan province in Thailand with Savannakhet province in Laos.

Meanwhile, a fourth bridge is under construction to connect Thailand’s Chiang Kong in Chiang Rai and Huay Xai in Bokeo province in Laos.

This will be main overland route from China, transiting Laos and connecting with highways in Chiang Rai province to Chiang Mai, Lamphang, Phrea, and Phitsanulok all the way to Bangkok.

It should be ready to open 10 December 2012.

The sailors died in a raid on two Chinese cargo boats on the Mekong on 5 October — an attack thought to have been carried out by a notorious gang in the “Golden Triangle” area known for drug smuggling.

Police in Thailand have since detained nine soldiers suspected of killing the sailors, and also thought to have links to a Myanmar drug kingpin.

The state-run China Daily newspaper quoted the Ministry of Public Security as saying China and its Southeast Asian neighbours — believed to be Thailand, Laos and Myanmar — would begin armed patrols on the river next month.

“China’s contribution to the patrols will come from a special armed force established under the Yunnan Provincial Border Control Corps,” the report quoted Cheng Jun, spokesperson for the ministry’s border control bureau, as saying.

The ministry refused to comment when contacted by AFP.

The report also quoted Yang Xi, a spokesperson for the Yunnan border corps, as saying that patrol forces would escort both Chinese ships and those from other countries.

The Mekong flows through Yunnan into Southeast Asia.

China reacted angrily to the October attack, summoning diplomatic envoys from Thailand, Laos and Myanmar and asking authorities to speed up investigations into the incident.

It also sent patrol boats down the Mekong to escort 164 stranded Chinese sailors and 28 cargo ships home, and has suspended shipping on the waterway, which runs through the four countries as well as Cambodia and Vietnam.

The river normally serves as a major trade route through those countries.

© 1994-2011 Agence France-Presse

The department’s bridge construction bureau confirmed work on the bridge and support roads, both in Thailand and Laos, was now 91.87% complete and 3.10% ahead of schedule.

Once open, heavy goods vehicles and oil tankers will by-pass Nakhon Phanom entirely, which should ease traffic in the centre of this riverside town. Commercial vehicles need to queue along the town’s riverside boulevard road waiting to board ferries, causing traffic congestion.

The foundation stones on both sides of the river were laid, 26 May 2009.

The bridge will span 1,423 metres with a road width of 13 metres.

After it opens in November, it will link Nakhon Phanom to Tha Khaek in Khammouan province, Laos and should boost trade and tourism between Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and southern part of China.

It is an important link in encouraging overland tourism and trade and is part of the Asian Development Bank’s East-West corridor project that envisages a road link from Myanmar passing through Thailand and Laos to Vietnam’s central region.

Most of the route in Thailand is on highway 12 that meets a new road leading to the bridge about 8 km north of Nakhon Phanom.

Once across the river service roads link with the highway 13 in Laos north of Tha Khaek. At present tankers and commercial vehicles use a ferry that crosses from the town centre of Nakhon Phanom to Tha Khaek.

The down town ferries will continue to transfer passengers, while all commercial vehicles and buses will use the bridge once it opens.

Meanwhile, the fourth Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge should be completed in 2014 connecting Chiang Khong in Chiang Rai province to Huay Xai in Bokeo province, Laos.

This will be main overland route from China, transiting Laos and connecting with highways in Chiang Rai province to Chiang Mai, Lampang, Phrae and Phitsanulok all the way to Bangkok.

The first friendship bridge is located at the border between Thailand and Laos at Nong Khai and the second at Mukdahan.

A bill introduced in the Senate applauds the delay in Laos of construction of the US$3.8 billion Xayaburi project and called for further delay in Mekong River dams until assurances of adequate planning and regional cooperation.

Senator Jim Webb, a member of President Barack Obama’s Democratic Party who heads a subcommittee on East Asia, called the postponement of the Xayaburi hydropower project “a positive step forward.”

“I hope that all countries will abide by their commitments to complete a robust assessment of this dam before moving forward on any construction. Absent such a collaborative approach, the ecological and economic stability of Southeast Asia is at risk,” Webb said in a statement.

The bill sponsored by Webb along with leading Republicans calls on the United States to use its “voice and vote” in international institutions to ensure strict environmental safeguards for Mekong River projects.

It also calls on the United States to “assist in identifying sustainable economic, water and energy alternatives to mainstream hydropower dams on the Mekong River.”

More than 60 million people in the lower Mekong basin depend on the river system for food, transport and economic activity. The Xayaburi dam would have been the first of 11 such projects.

Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam urged Laos to put off the dam, which environmentalists said would trap vital nutrients, increase algae growth and prevent dozens of species of migratory fish — including the giant catfish — swimming upstream to spawning grounds.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2009 launched a Lower Mekong initiative as part of a drive to re-engage Southeast Asia, with a focus on education, adapting to climate change and fighting diseases including HIV/AIDS.

© 1994-2011 Agence France-Presse

Lao Prime Minister, Thongsing Thammavong, informed his counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung “of Laos’ decision to temporarily suspend the Xayaburi hydropower project,” Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported at the weekend from Jakarta.

It said the two communist leaders met in the Indonesian capital on the sidelines of the ASEAN regional summit.

“PM Dung thanked the Lao Party and government for this important decision”, which reflected “deep consideration” of Vietnam’s position, the VNA report said.

At a regional meeting last month, Vietnam, which has close political ties with tiny, landlocked Laos, voiced “deep” concerns about inadequate assessments and the risk of damage to its fishing and farm industries.

It called for hydropower projects on the mainstream Mekong to be deferred for at least a decade.

Workers had already begun building roads to the site in northern Laos. Xayaburi is the first of 11 such projects proposed for the mainstream lower Mekong.

“We are glad that the Lao government considered the postponement of this project and commission of a new study… due to strong and wide opposition,” said Pianporn Deetes, a spokeswoman in Bangkok for the US-based environmental group International Rivers.

While welcoming the announcement from Vietnam, she said Laos should issue its own statement.

Environmentalists have warned that damming the lower Mekong would trap vital nutrients, increase algae growth and prevent dozens of species of migratory fish — including the giant catfish — swimming upstream to spawning grounds.

Laos, Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia make up the Mekong River Commission (MRC), an inter-governmental body that deals with all Mekong River-related activities including fisheries, agriculture and flood management.

Laos had not yet informed the MRC secretariat of a formal suspension of the project but “Vietnamese authorities have confirmed the news report”.

“We are still waiting for a response from the Lao authorities,” the secretariat told AFP in a statement.

More than 60 million people in the lower Mekong basin depend on the river system for food, transport and economic activity, the MRC says.

Laos is one of the poorest countries in the world and sees hydropower as vital to its future.

© 1994-2011 Agence France-Presse

The hotel will soft launch 15 December but will not be fully operational until February 2011.

Luang Say Residence adopts the look of colonial era architecture, similar to some of the town’s former French government buildings dating back to the late 18th century.

It will feature 24 suites – 20 units, 43-sqm in four individual pavilions and another four 74-sqm suites in the main building. The hotel management says it will offer restaurant menus that were popular with French colonial officials and members of the former Lao royal family who were resident in the town during the 19th century.

The hotel stands on the same road as the up-market Residence Phou Vao and is close to Phosy Market. Like all the properties in town, the transfer to the airport takes just 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, Mekong Cruises launches a new vessel, this month, a traditional wooden river craft named Pak Ou IV. It will operate a rotational service with its sister boats, Pak Ou I and III, along the northern stretches of the Mekong River linking Houay Xay (opposite Chiang Rai province in Thailand) and Luang Prabang.

The company has a 20-chalet lodge in Pak Beng (half-way house on the trip to Luang Prabang) to provide overnight accommodation for Luang Say cruise passengers using Pak Ou boats (I, III and IV).

Mekong Cruises also operates cruise in the southern reaches of the Mekong River near Pakse, branded Vat Phou Cruise, which uses the Vat Phou boat that has 12 cabins on board.

According to a report in the Vientiane Times, the bridge’s project deputy head, Nongsavan Thammvavong, confirmed that work, which began in May 2009, was nearly 33% completed meaning the overall project was five months ahead of its schedule. According to the original deadline the bridge should be ready by November 2011.

He was quoted: “We’ve just finished the most difficult part to build the four foundation posts in the middle of the Mekong River. This means we can continue with our work in the rainy season without interruptions.”

Electricity poles on the Laos side of the river are being removed along Road No 13 to make way for the access road, and land is being prepared for the construction of a new immigration building. On the Thai side, the foundations are being laid for a new immigration office that is located about 5 km north of Nakhon Phanom town.

The bridge will have two lanes for road traffic, each 3.5 metres wide, and two footpaths, each 1.05 metres wide. It will be built in the same style as the Lao-Thai Friendship Bridge linking Vientiane with Nong Khai, but will not have a railway track.