Train Rumbles Through Busy Thailand Market

Food traders in Thailand have been filmed dodging trains that pass straight through their busy market.

When the warning siren blares, traders have just three minutes to clear away their stalls and produce.

Then, once the train has rumbled past, it is back to business for the fish and vegetable sellers in Mae Khrong, about 35 miles west of the Thai capital Bangkok. Eight trains pass through every day.

"We have so little time (to move away from the tracks) but all the vendors can make it in time. We are used to it," said fishmonger Pailin Worakum.

The market was originally behind the railway line but as it expanded, the vendors started spilling out over the tracks and their stalls now straddle a 500m stretch.

It has become a popular sight with tourists who marvel at the traders' stall-clearing routine.

''I never thought that this train track is the one people are travelling on, I thought this was an old track, and nowadays people would never pass here with the train," said Portuguese holidaymaker Hilario Ferreira.

Officials say there have been "no major accidents" since the railway market started.