[5] In January 2007, work began on a 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) extension of the metre-gauge State Railway of Thailand network across the Friendship Bridge to Thanaleng railway station, a new passenger and freight terminal in Dongphosy village, 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of Vientiane.
[6] Test trains began running on 4 July 2008,[7] and Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand formally inaugurated the line on 5 March 2009.
A line between Vientiane and Vũng Áng port in Hà Tĩnh province (Vietnam) via Mụ Giạ Pass has also been discussed since 2007.
[citation needed] In July 2022, the Lao government announced a feasibility study into the Laos-Vietnam Railway Project.
The initial phase would connect Thakhek and Vũng Áng seaport in Vietnam, a distance of 139 kilometres.
[16] After many years of delays and negotiations, by 2015, both countries had agreed upon a revised plan and would jointly finance and operate the railway under a build-operate-transfer arrangement.