Despite the Yangon Region Chief Minister’s promise to be rid of old passenger buses that have been deemed unsuitable for Yangon city, an authority from Yangon’s public transport regulatory body said the plan had yet to be officiated.
Chief Minister Phyo Min Thein has verbally agreed to remove the ban on 19 June at a meeting regarding public transportation in Yangon.
The regulatory body, more commonly known by its Myanmar language abbreviation Ma Hta Tha, said they just submitted a reminder to the Yangon Region government to proceed forward with the decision.
According to Ma Hta Tha, at least half of 7,430 buses given the “Kha” license are derelict vehicles. Even among express bus lines that ferry passengers to North Okkalapa have around 80 buses that are waiting for legal permission to trade in old buses for newer ones.
“The previous administration stopped all vehicles carrying “Kha” licenses from going past the Yangon Region borders. When we start out, we normally buy a new bus, let it run for three to five years until the cost of the vehicle is covered and then sell it to interested buyers from rural regions in order to afford to buy a new bus. All that was stopped because they said it might reduce the amount of travellers in Yangon Region. It might be fine back then, but now, that we are at a new age, the government should fix this policy. The owners want to change the buses, but government’s regulation is stopping us from doing so. We all have a living to worry about, and the vehicles are in extremely poor conditions. At least half the buses are derelict,” said a bus line owner.
Source: Eleven Myanmar
