How good are Trains, Roads, and Flights in Southeast Asia?

Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Brunei, Laos and Cambodia are included in a study about the development of the transport sector.

In terms of railroads, Indonesia and Myanmar have the largest rail mileage among Southeast Asian countries with a total rail mileage of over 6,000 km in 2020. As of 2022, Laos has a total rail mileage of over 400 km.

The development of the transport sector in Southeast Asian countries varies considerably. Thailand has the largest road mileage among Southeast Asian countries, with a total road mileage of about 700,000 km in 2020, followed by Vietnam and Indonesia with about 600,000 km.

The economic levels of the 10 Southeast Asian countries vary greatly, with Singapore being the only developed country with a per capita GDP of about US$73,000 in 2021.

Myanmar and Cambodia will have a GDP per capita of less than US$2,000 in 2021.

The population and minimum wage levels also vary greatly from country to country, with Brunei, which has the smallest population, having a total population of fewer than 500,000 people in 2021, and Indonesia, which has the largest population, having a population of about 275 million people in 2021.

The most economically advanced countries in Southeast Asia do not have a legal minimum wage, with the actual minimum wage exceeding US$400 per month (for foreign maids), while the lowest minimum wage level in Myanmar is only about US$93 per month.

Singapore is the most developed country in Southeast Asia in terms of water transport. In 2020, the port of Singapore will have a foreign trade cargo throughput of 590 million tons and a container throughput of 36,871,000 TEUs, while Myanmar will have a container throughput of only about 1 million TEUs.

With more than two hundred airports serving domestic routes, Indonesia ranks among the top Southeast Asian countries in terms of domestic passenger and cargo traffic.

Among international routes, Thailand ranked first among Southeast Asian countries with over 80 million international passengers in 2019, while Brunei and Laos had only about 2 million international passengers.

In terms of cargo, Singapore Airport had the highest international cargo throughput, with 930,000 tons of international cargo loaded and 1,084,000 tons unloaded in 2019, 50 times the international cargo throughput of Brunei and Laos in the same period.

Overall, the transportation industry in Southeast Asian countries has been developing in recent years, especially with the rise of emerging markets such as Vietnam and Thailand, with rapid economic growth, which has driven the development of the transportation industry.

Southeast Asia’s transportation industry will continue to grow from 2023-2032. On the one hand, cheap labor and land costs have attracted a large number of foreign investors to shift their production capacity to Southeast Asia, and the scale of foreign trade has expanded, promoting the development of its transportation industry.

On the other hand, Southeast Asia’s economic growth and increased domestic passenger and freight demand will also promote the development of the transportation industry.