Viral Video Shows A Food Market Set On Railway Tracks In Thailand

Thailand's Maeklong Railway Station in Samut Songkhram province is a tourist attraction. The station has Rom Hup Market which literally sits on the railway track.

According to Thailand tourism's website, the market is spread over a 100-metre stretch and is open from 6 am to 6 pm. It is a common fresh market selling seafood, vegetable, fruits, fresh and dried food, meats and other miscellaneous goods. The market is called the 'life-risking' market because its stalls are attached to the Mae Klong-Ban Laem railway, which is a short railway line running from and to Mahachai and Mae Klong.

Vendors at the market put out parasols or canvases to protect themselves against the sun. The shelters stick into the railway where visitors walk and do their shopping. When each signal of the arriving train rings, chaos happens: vendors will rush to close their parasols and canvas, along with clearing all goods that will obstruct the coming train at a great speed.

A video of it was shared by Eric Solheim on Twitter. The caption of the video reads, "Maeklong Railway Market, Thailand a marketplace with a railway track through it."

Watch the video here:

Maeklong Railway Market, Thailand 🇹🇭 a marketplace with a railway track through it 🛒@RebeccaH2030

pic.twitter.com/MDR3CkK6EL

— Erik Solheim (@ErikSolheim) January 23, 2023

The video has amassed over 26,000 views on Twitter. A user commented, "Not sure I would buy that produce/edibles so close to the tracks, seems uncaring selling & feeding to another.  Makes sense some laws that are in place."

Another user commented, "This is the original version of online shopping."

The third user commented, "Growing up, we used to have this along the Railway line in Mushin. In fact, they sit and sell between the tracks. It is the railway horn that disperses them. I saw new guard rails when I went home recently and notices everywhere, which is good."