'Bamboo Trains' -- Cambodia's Ride Of Choice

Cambodia's exiting train infrastructure has some problems. Rails have been ignored and basically abandoned by the country's major railway operator, Cambodian Railways. The trains it does operate have turned out to be not much help to the nation's citizens, sometimes arriving only once per week at traveling at speeds less than 5 miles per hour.

The people of Cambodia have made actions to solve their transit woes by building trains out of bamboo and running them on the country's underused rails. Powered by small electric generators, the trains truck along at nearly 25 miles per hour and have been very successful and popular amongs the people.

"Low fares add to the appeal, but the service is not without its quirks. There is only one track - so if two trains meet, the one with the lightest load has to be taken off the rails so the other can pass."

"The bamboo trains have been an unofficial part of the Cambodian transport network for years. The official railways survived decades of civil war and sabotage by the Khmer Rouge, but all those years without maintenance have taken their toll."