In October 2010, the Thai parliament approved initial proposals for a high-speed rail (HSR) network. Five lines capable of handling 250 km/h speeds would radiate from Bangkok.
In March 2013, the transport minister revealed that only one company would be selected to run all high-speed train routes, scheduled to be operational between 2018 and 2019. The first 86 km section from Bang Sue to Ayutthaya was planned to be tendered in late-2013. However, a seven month-long political crisis involving the dissolution of parliament and an annulled February 2014 election culminated in a military coup in May 2014. In July 2014 the new military administration deferred all HSR plans until a civilian government was installed. However in September 2017 the administation outlined the building of the HSR network in three stages.
Stage 1 (2017-2021) includes 3 sections, one of which is the northeastern section from Bangkok to Nakhon Ratchasima. The first contract of Phase 1 of this section is the 3.5 km line from Klang Dong to Pang Asok.