Rangoon Launches New Bus System
Rangoon Launches New Bus System
The Irrawaddy, 16 Jan 2017
URL: http://www.irrawaddy.com/news/rangoon-launches-new-bus-system.html
The new Yangon Bus Service (YBS) replaced the former capital’s notorious old bus system—the Rangoon Motor Vehicles Supervisory Committee also known as Ma Hta Tha—with 69 bus lines.
The regional government announced last week that the new public transit would serve the city’s commuters from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily with nearly 4,000 vehicles.
About 4,000 volunteers from different philanthropic and charity organizations led by regional lawmakers occupied some 2,000 bus stops across the city on Monday, distributing flyers that included bus route information and helping install the YBS mobile application.
The volunteers will be present until Friday assisting commuters with the shift to the new system.
Bus fares range from 100-300 kyats, depending on distances of travel.
The regional government hopes the new system will also relieve some of the traffic congestion in the hub of the city, limiting the bus lines to serve downtown.
The buses operating under the new system have yet to install digital payment systems, which will only be implemented in the next three-month phase, Rangoon chief minister U Phyo Min Thein told the media at a press conference on Saturday.
According to the Japan International Cooperation Agency’s 2014 survey on public transportation in Rangoon, 61 percent of Rangoon’s population relies on public transportation and 49 percent of all commuters use the bus—approximately 2.6 million people.
The regional government announced last week that the new public transit would serve the city’s commuters from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily with nearly 4,000 vehicles.
About 4,000 volunteers from different philanthropic and charity organizations led by regional lawmakers occupied some 2,000 bus stops across the city on Monday, distributing flyers that included bus route information and helping install the YBS mobile application.
The volunteers will be present until Friday assisting commuters with the shift to the new system.
Bus fares range from 100-300 kyats, depending on distances of travel.
The regional government hopes the new system will also relieve some of the traffic congestion in the hub of the city, limiting the bus lines to serve downtown.
The buses operating under the new system have yet to install digital payment systems, which will only be implemented in the next three-month phase, Rangoon chief minister U Phyo Min Thein told the media at a press conference on Saturday.
According to the Japan International Cooperation Agency’s 2014 survey on public transportation in Rangoon, 61 percent of Rangoon’s population relies on public transportation and 49 percent of all commuters use the bus—approximately 2.6 million people.