Bangkok Mae Klong Railway (Maeklong Railway) Market Thailand Asia

The Thonburi – Samut Songkhram railway, also known as the Mae Klong Railway, serves suburban traffic in the southwest of Bangkok.

Since the 1880s, the Siamese government granted various private consortia concessions to build railways. However, these consortia often turned out to be speculative companies that never even got as far as the start of construction on the route they were licensed to use. For the first time with the railway line Bangkok – Samut Prakan, which opened in 1893, such a private consortium was able to successfully carry out such a project - albeit with considerable financial support from King Chulalongkorn the Great (Rama V). The Thonburi – Samut Songkhram railway was then the second case in which this succeeded. The two sections were initially planned and built by different companies, but both were merged immediately after the commissioning of both sections.

You will hear the train long before you actually see it. Vendors and merchants collectively begin to coolly move their belongings and umbrellas away from the tracks as the train barrels forward, laying on its horn every now and then to warn people of its inevitable passing; this is why the market is also known as the ‘umbrella pulldown’ market.

Baskets of goods are dragged away from the tracks, the overhead tents are drawn back and the tracks are cleared, making way for the train. Those hoping to capture a photo are waved back by those who suspect they are a little too close for comfort to the tracks. You will be able to spot those who work at the market and those who do not almost instantly; visitors of the market, whether they are Thai or foreigners, will have cell phones in hand, smiles on their faces, and will be shifting back and forth to position themselves for the perfect photo. Those who work there, however, watch this train go by up to eight times a day and get little to no thrill of its passing.