Norry
Encyclopedia
A norry or nori is an improvised rail vehicle from Cambodia
. Lonely Planet
describes it as "Cambodia's bamboo train". The trains run at speeds of up to 50 km/h on the 1 m gauge tracks around Battambang
and Poipet
. A scheduled service run by the Government also operates but is slower and less reliable due to frequent derailments and breakdowns. The rest of the network, originally built by French colonial settlers, is largely abandoned since the Khmer Rouge
regime effectively shut it down. In 2006 the BBC reported that there was only one scheduled service a week and it ran at not much more than walking pace.
Norries have low fares, are frequent and relatively fast, so are popular despite their rudimentary design, lack of brakes, the state of the rails (often broken or warped) and lack of any formal operating regime. Simple construction and light weight mean that the norry may be simply removed from the track – if two meet on the line, the one with the lighter load is unloaded, lifted and carried round the other, and at the end of the line the vehicle is lifted and turned.
There is some precedent for the Norry's popularity. In the 1980s and 1990s due to the civil war in Cambodia
trains were led by an armed and armoured carriage; the first carriages of the train were flatbeds used as mine sweepers and travel on these was free for the first carriage and half-price for the second. These options were popular despite the obvious risks.
Norry construction is a cottage industry conducted in trackside villages. It takes around four days to construct one of the vehicles, which have a steel frame overlaid with bamboo slats resting on wheels taken from abandoned tanks.
Originally propelled by hand using punt poles, power is now provided by small motorcycle or tractor engines with belt drive direct to the rear axle, delivering top speeds of 40 km/h or more. Fuel is bought from villages along the route, supplied in glass jars and the flat-bedded vehicles will carry any load that will fit, including people, livestock, motorcycles and rice.
In February 2008 a project was announced to rebuild the railway lines from Sihanoukville
to Phnom Penh
, Phnom Penh to Poipet and on to Sisophon
and the Thai border (a stretch completely destroyed by the Khmer regime). This was due to be completed at the end of 2009. As of May 2011 this project has only completed from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville
.
As of May 2011 the Bamboo train appears to be the only train operating around the Battambang
area, which can be observed by the completely overgrown tracks passing though the city. On the outskirts a tourist service operates for $5 per person to a village that has a brick factory. This is overseen by the local Tourist Police.
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
. Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet is the largest travel guide book and digital media publisher in the world. The company is owned by BBC Worldwide, which bought a 75% share from the founders Maureen and Tony Wheeler in 2007 and the final 25% in February 2011...
describes it as "Cambodia's bamboo train". The trains run at speeds of up to 50 km/h on the 1 m gauge tracks around Battambang
Battambang
Battambang is the capital city of Battambang province in northwestern Cambodia.Battambang is the second-largest city in Cambodia with a population of over 250,000. Founded in the 11th century by the Khmer Empire, Battambang is well known for being the leading rice-producing province of the country...
and Poipet
Poipet
Poipet is a Cambodian town on the Cambodia/Thailand border, in Ou Chrov district, Banteay Meanchey Province. It is a key crossing point between the two countries, and also extremely popular as a gambling destination as gambling is popular, but illegal in Thailand...
. A scheduled service run by the Government also operates but is slower and less reliable due to frequent derailments and breakdowns. The rest of the network, originally built by French colonial settlers, is largely abandoned since the Khmer Rouge
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
regime effectively shut it down. In 2006 the BBC reported that there was only one scheduled service a week and it ran at not much more than walking pace.
Norries have low fares, are frequent and relatively fast, so are popular despite their rudimentary design, lack of brakes, the state of the rails (often broken or warped) and lack of any formal operating regime. Simple construction and light weight mean that the norry may be simply removed from the track – if two meet on the line, the one with the lighter load is unloaded, lifted and carried round the other, and at the end of the line the vehicle is lifted and turned.
There is some precedent for the Norry's popularity. In the 1980s and 1990s due to the civil war in Cambodia
Cambodian Civil War
The Cambodian Civil War was a conflict that pitted the forces of the Communist Party of Kampuchea and their allies the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the Viet Cong against the government forces of Cambodia , which were supported by the United States and the Republic of Vietnam The Cambodian...
trains were led by an armed and armoured carriage; the first carriages of the train were flatbeds used as mine sweepers and travel on these was free for the first carriage and half-price for the second. These options were popular despite the obvious risks.
Norry construction is a cottage industry conducted in trackside villages. It takes around four days to construct one of the vehicles, which have a steel frame overlaid with bamboo slats resting on wheels taken from abandoned tanks.
Originally propelled by hand using punt poles, power is now provided by small motorcycle or tractor engines with belt drive direct to the rear axle, delivering top speeds of 40 km/h or more. Fuel is bought from villages along the route, supplied in glass jars and the flat-bedded vehicles will carry any load that will fit, including people, livestock, motorcycles and rice.
In February 2008 a project was announced to rebuild the railway lines from Sihanoukville
Sihanoukville
Sihanoukville , also known as Kampong Saom, is a province in southern Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand. This port city is a growing Cambodian urban center, located southwest of the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh. The province is named after King Father Norodom Sihanouk and grew up around the...
to Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is the capital and largest city of Cambodia. Located on the banks of the Mekong River, Phnom Penh has been the national capital since the French colonized Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation's center of economic and industrial activities, as well as the center of security,...
, Phnom Penh to Poipet and on to Sisophon
Sisophon
Sisophon is the provincial capital of Banteay Meanchey, Cambodia. The city separates Cambodia's National Highway 5 and National Highway 6. Serei Saophoan is difficult to pronounce, so often the area is written transliterated as "Sisophon", even on Cambodian signs...
and the Thai border (a stretch completely destroyed by the Khmer regime). This was due to be completed at the end of 2009. As of May 2011 this project has only completed from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville
Sihanoukville
Sihanoukville , also known as Kampong Saom, is a province in southern Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand. This port city is a growing Cambodian urban center, located southwest of the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh. The province is named after King Father Norodom Sihanouk and grew up around the...
.
As of May 2011 the Bamboo train appears to be the only train operating around the Battambang
Battambang
Battambang is the capital city of Battambang province in northwestern Cambodia.Battambang is the second-largest city in Cambodia with a population of over 250,000. Founded in the 11th century by the Khmer Empire, Battambang is well known for being the leading rice-producing province of the country...
area, which can be observed by the completely overgrown tracks passing though the city. On the outskirts a tourist service operates for $5 per person to a village that has a brick factory. This is overseen by the local Tourist Police.