Rama VI Bridge ( th, สะพานพระราม 6, , ) is a railway

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

over the

Chao Phraya River The Chao Phraya ( or ; th, แม่น้ำเจ้าพระยา, , or ) is the major river in Thailand, with its low alluvial plain forming the centre of the country. It flows through Bangkok and then into the Gulf of Thailand. Et ...

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

, in

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

, connecting the districts Bang Sue and

Bang Phlat Bang Phlat ( th, บางพลัด, ) is one of the 50 districts (''khet'') of Bangkok, Thailand. Its neighboring districts, clockwise from the north, are Bang Kruai district, Bang Sue, Dusit, Phra Nakhon, Bangkok Noi, and Taling Chan. H ...

. It is the first bridge to cross the Chao Phraya River and was initially both a

single-track railway A single-track railway is a railway where trains traveling in both directions share the same track. Single track is usually found on lesser-used rail lines, often branch lines, where the level of traffic is not high enough to justify the co ...

and road (two lanes) bridge. Construction started in December 1922, during the reign of

Vajiravudh Vajiravudh ( th, วชิราวุธ, , 1 January 188126 November 1925) was the sixth monarch of Siam under the Chakri dynasty as Rama VI. He ruled from 23 October 1910 until his death in 1925. King Vajiravudh is best known for his efforts ...

to link the

Northern Line The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, two ...

with the Southern Line. Construction cost was 2,714,113.30

baht The baht (; th, บาท, ; currency sign, sign: ฿; ISO 4217, code: THB) is the official currency of Thailand. It is divided into 100 ''satang'' (, ). The issuance of currency is the responsibility of the Bank of Thailand. Society for Worldw ...

and It was officially opened on 1 January 1927. Center of the bridge was torn on 7 February 1945, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, thus it was repaired in 1950-1953 by

Dorman Long Dorman Long & Co was a UK steel producer, later diversifying into bridge building. It was once listed on the London Stock Exchange. History The company was founded by Arthur Dorman and Albert de Lande Long when they acquired ''West Marsh ...

and

Christiani & Nielsen Christiani & Nielsen (Thai) Public Company Limited is a construction contractor with major operations in Thailand and Southeast Asia. Originally a Danish company, it is today a listed company majority owned by the GP Group. The company provide ...

and was officially reopened on 12 December 1953. Following the opening of the adjacent

Rama VII Bridge Rama VII Bridge ( th, สะพานพระราม 7, , ) is a bridge over the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok and Nonthaburi, in Thailand, connecting the Bang Sue District and Bang Phlat District. The roadway is in a dual carriageway confi ...

in 1992 due to increase in traffic volumes, cars were diverted from Rama VI bridge. Another railway track was laid in place of the road completed in 1999, making it a railway-only bridge. The bridge is located 13 km from Bangkok railway station, between

Bang Son railway station Bang Son Station ( th, สถานีบางซ่อน) is a railway station located in Bang Sue Subdistrict, Bang Sue District, Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the ...

and

Bang Bamru railway station Bang Bamru station ( th, สถานีบางบำหรุ) is a railway station located at Bang Phlat Subdistrict, Bang Phlat District, Bangkok. It is a class 1 station and serves two systems operated by the State Railway of Thailand, So ...

. The bridge has 5 spans, all of the through-truss design: 77, 83, 120, 83 and 77 metres respectively, for a total length of 441 metres. It is thus the longest railway bridge in Thailand, almost 110 metres longer than its nearest rival, the 132 metre River Kwai bridge near

Kanchanaburi Kanchanaburi ( th, กาญจนบุรี, ) is a town municipality (''thesaban mueang'') in the west of Thailand and part of Kanchanaburi Province. In 2006 it had a population of 31,327. That number was reduced to 25,651 in 2017. The town ...

References

Bridges in Bangkok Bridges completed in 1926 Crossings of the Chao Phraya River Railway bridges in Thailand Unregistered ancient monuments in Bangkok {{Bangkok-stub