Bamboo Train Of Cambodia

Bamboo Train Of Cambodia 

For years, travellers in Cambodia had to deal with one of the world's worst train networks. Trains run infrequently in between the villages, break-downs and derailments are common, and the trains themselves travel at little more than walking pace. So people in the north west of the country, near Cambodia's second city of Battambang, have taken matters into their own hands. They have created their own rail service using pieces of bamboo and abandoned barbell like train wheels. The locals call the vehicles "Norries", but overseas visitors know them as "bamboo trains".

Each bamboo train consists of a 3m-long wood frame, covered lengthwise with slats made of ultra-light bamboo, that rests on two barbell-like bogies. A repurposed water-pump or gasoline engine transfers power to the rear wheels by means of belts. These rickety contraptions can haul twenty or more people over the aging rails at speeds nearing 40 km/h, with the track just a couple of inches below the passengers. Warped and broken rails make for a bone-shaking journey.

And what happens when a bamboo train meets another bamboo train coming the opposite way? The answer is simple: whichever car has the least amount of passengers is quickly lifted off the tracks to allow the other to pass. They are then reassembled, engine restarted and on their way they go. It can be done with a minute. The importance of urgent bamboo train removal is of interest should a real train come your way.