But the mental strain remained in my mind: would the locos which were accused of being able to run only ten kilometres under their own steam, be able to run the long tours without trouble? We were encouraged by our tour guide to visit the station. On the other hand, we really wanted to use a 4-6-2 Pacific. 534 4-6-2. In the end, they were going with no fear of a problem from station to station in short time slots between regular trains. Just imagine: a group of 20 people would need to pay 1,050 US-Dollars each for just one single train. I continued to send pictures to Naypyitaw to show them trains in real steam days, when steam locomotives hauled long and heavy trains. Both issues were repaired on our rest day in Mottama. We paid the money and they really did it! For our tour we had these locomotives available: We used them all in front of different train compositions. But this didn’t stop our joy: both trains went ahead as scheduled and resulted in several nice pictures. At the beginning of the negotiations, it didn’t look promising at all. Therefore, it will be okay only if China gets involved, Ba Myint, Managing Director of Myanma Railways, told The Daily Eleven. Myanmar Railways also repaired the turntables in Bago and Mokepalin. Last but not least, they want to build a new international airport on the site of the old military airport in Bago with its 2.8 miles long runway. “In the afternoon on 1 May, 2,800 tons of steel rails […], Date: 28 January 2019   Loan Agreement No: MY- P4 dated 5 September 2014, and MY-P21 dated 1 March 2017   The Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar has received ODA Loans from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for Yangon-Mandalay Railway Improvement Project Phase I. The future of steam in Burma seemed to be dark. The Bids are […], Yangon circular train coaches will be replaced with 66 DMU coaches from Japan which will arrive in 2018, according to Myanma Railway. Instead, it seemed it might not be possible at all, and even if so, not at an affordable price. All Aboard the Trains of Myanmar. Investments in the rail infrastructure are, in contrast, sparse. Min Dharma is a subsidiary of Mottama Holdings owned by Chinese-Myanmar businessman Yang Ho. 2 Railway Assets and Staff 9 2.1 Track 9 2.2 Signals and Telecommunications 11 2.3 Locomotives and Rolling Stock 12 2.4 Myanma Railways Organization and Human Resources 14 2.5 Information Systems 16 3 Railway Performance 17 3.1 Operational 17 3.2 Safety 21 3.3 Productivity 22 … With the help of the diesel, the train wasn’t any faster because of the speed restriction of 20 miles per hour for trains without a through brake. So we got one of the wonderful British Pacifics for our trains. But why shouldn’t it work? During this visit I could see the four locomotives on plinths in the new capital Nyapyitaw: two ST (ST 761 and 764) are at the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the YB 534 in front of Naypyitaw main station and the 2-4-0 tank No.A1 inside the station building. So we tried to get permission to convert the loco back to an oil-burner, as it had been for decades. The skills of how to operate a coal fired loco had been lost, after so many years. Still in the dark of that morning, with a quietly roaring oil burner YC 692, sidled up to the train and touched the coupling gently. But the little sister, the YB is required to make the family complete. Departure time, Arrival time and Total duration. The 132DN train, hauled by loco No. Post Office 081 - 29002. Kemmendine is at Myanmar, Yangon. lower price than bus counters). The resistance came from the ministry. Not long ago, even on the slowest passenger train, you couldn’t expect to find a seat. The railways clarified all issues of water supply in time. Bago would be a perfect place for a living steam museum. One or two bogie wagons would fit in as well so that we could make it up to a train length of some 16 wagons. Even in express trains you have a free choice of seats on the shadow side of the coach these days. But the two weeks before the tour were especially intense and important to make it a smooth running tour. Many soldiers who left the army went to the state railway because it’s a state owned company. Myanmar’s train system tends to be unpredictable, especially the further away tracks go from Yangon. Status: Operational. Rail transport in Myanmar consists of a 10,296.01 km (6,398 mi) railway network with 1225 stations. It hadn’t seen a locomotive turning on it for more than a decade. Fire 085 - 22323. The train station is difficult in navigation, no English instructions, no English speaking employees. We bought the paint and paid the railway employees from Bago, who would otherwise have waited idle for new tasks to be done, which didn’t exist. Hence, we had to write down every wagon number plus the location and condition of the wagon. With the help of a diesel pump and a hose they took water from a little pond. But we cannot wait another nine years, even though the re-signalling of Bago station has already seen a delay of seven years, it’s unlikely that it’ll take another seven years before the gantries and semaphores fall. Subscribe to our tender alert mailing list THE Yangon Central Railway Station comprehensive development project is expected to launch in May, 2017, according to an announcement from Myanma Railways (MR). As part of the collaboration, steel rails for laying alongside the Yangon-Mandalay railroad were brought in from Japan and unloaded at Yangon Port yesterday. In September 2016 the loco went back to the workshop at Insein and was converted in October/November to a traditional oil-burning locomotive. The Prequalification (PQ) and Bid are invited […], Subscribe to our tender alert mailing list Date: 2nd August, 2017 IFB No: IFB-MR/YCR/UG/CP201 (T) 2017-18, and MR/YCR/UG/CP202 (T) 2017-18 1. He was able to convince the state railway to overhaul a steam locomotive. Over 70,000 […], HIGH-rise car parking and hotel projects in Yangon will be implemented on the land belonging to Myanma Railway, it has been learned. But we wanted to repaint the loco to offer authentic looking trains. Trains which were out on the line were stopped in the next station and the steam loco had to leave its train, steaming back to its depot. About Mandalay Railway Station . The people who operate the locomotives in Bagan were happy to repeat this fairytale as long as it had to be accepted as a given fact. We also planted this wish to have a YB back to life in another department (operation). We went half of the line to Pyuntaza without a diesel helper. This would fill a lonely day. After they’d made it serviceable again, with very little effort, they rented the loco to the businessman. More pictures can found in the German trip report. Are the loco crews able to handle these engines after nine years? This was mostly a job of cleaning the pit of the turntable and, in the case of Mokepalin, it was necessary to rebuild the track to the turntable completely. There were a number of people both local travellers and tourists visiting the station while we were there. Railway Station 085 - 22021. When we finally received the okay to run steam hauled charter trains, much time had passed and almost all four wheel freight wagons were out of use. Our return run from Mottama to Bago went absolutely hassle free. The traditional grey/black passenger coaches were all repainted in blue-brown, cream-brown or with a full advert label over the complete body of the coach. The locomotives were decorated with baskets with food and flowers, and one loco had a candle held in a rum bottle (Grand Royal) and placed on the buffer beam. 7 days charter trains and you needed to pay some 5 to 7,000 US-Dollars per person without flight, hotels, bus, guide, food etc. I was trying to get a permit to haul regular trains with steam on the Myanmar Railways because a five freight cars long train is neither really photogenic nor authentic, but to haul passenger trains, as we had in 2007, seemed to be impossible by now. Another plus point for Bago is that there are still crews with the knowledge and the skill to maintain and operate steam locomotives. For the tourist trains, they had painted fancy embellishments on locos and tenders. There was too little gravel and some connections were loose, it said. © FarRail Tours - e-mail: Bernd Seiler - zurück zu FarRail Tours And so, they agreed to all suggestions and wishes. It was a long, rocky and also very expensive way we’d had to go down. At least, the required rolling stock to form an authentic stone train wasn’t available any more. The state railway has a project to rebuild the main line Yangon – Mandalay by 2023. This time, our stones reached a length of 13 wagons, which was not too bad as there aren’t many position where you see the whole length of the train but 16 would be even better … The overhaul of additional wagons will cost us money, that’s for sure, but I’m willing to split the costs of the investments over several tours, to keep the price within an affordable range. Over the last years, Myanmar Railways has been losing freight traffic and passenger at an alarming rate. Believe it or not, the Manager ordered other high ranked employees from his department to discuss the opportunity. train #120 Sleeper, Myanmar Railways, Feb 14, 2020. But it is the plinthed loco in front of the capital’s main station. With the six four wheel wagons we’ve paid for already added, it would make a 14 wagon train with the obligatory crew’s van. But the marketing was lousy and the prices were high, so the businessman cancelled his contract with the state railway before it expired. They support the idea of steam charter trains, but he can’t do anything about Myanmar Railways’ price policies. They removed all brass parts and took off most of the rods. To get an appointment with the Deputy General Manager (Locomotives), we had to wait a long while, but it was worth it. Northeast Frontier Railway: Line(s) Lumding–Dibrugarh section: Platforms: 3: Construction; Structure type: Standard on ground: Parking: Yes: Bicycle facilities: No: Disabled access: Other information; Status: Functioning: Station code: DMV: Division(s) Lumding: History; Opened: 1903: Previous names: Assam Bengal Railway: Location This reason sounds like a Chinese excuse: the locos are old and can’t haul heavy trains any more. Closing Date 31 October 2017, Government of the Republic of The Union of Myanmar, interlocking and relay-interlocking systems, Yangon Circular Railway Line Upgrading Project, 66 coaches for RBE train to arrive in 2018, High-rise car parking and hotels to be built on Myanma Railway land, Yangon Railway Station Complex Project to launch in May 2017, General Manager of Myanma Railways (Lower Myanmar), Myanma Railway invites EOI to businessmen or companies for maintenance of new Passenger express train; Closing Date: Jan 5, 2016, Ministry of Rail Transportation to invite open tender to implement the Development Project In Puzundaung; Closing Date: 27th July 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkPm2XpaAzc, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uJ1wIkICYs. Expected arrival and departure times almost always vary, often by hours, so be flexible to get the most enjoyment out of train travel in Myanmar.. Standards for train cleanliness and comfort are relatively low as most trains in Myanmar are very outdated. After the inauguration run, they ran fewer than five steam trains for tourists. But who might come to Naypyitaw to visit this museum? This made things which had to be paid in US-Dollars in advance and then paid back in Euros later much more expensive, so any kind of calculations became obsolete over the years. Some tensions I would say … besides the ministry of transport we also contacted the ministry of tourism, but their position is not the strongest after tourism came down by 75%, according to official sources, and 90% according to what we have seen on our trip. Situated in downtown Mandalay lies one of the largest railway stations in Myanmar called Mandalay Railway Station.This train station serves as the gateway for Upper Myanmar to the national rail network that stretches over 3, 126 miles, as well as being the terminus of the main rail line departing from Yangon to multiple railway stations along the route. Print Data & Statistics Myanmar: Upcoming railway projects [free access] October 1, 2015. Yangon-Mandalay Railway Improvement Project Phase I - Section CP101 (approx. The number of filling stations has exploded; they bank on more traffic on the roads in the future. A number of certain and delicate details will never make it into the public domain, because if they did, there would be neither a serviceable YC nor an authentic steam train rolling over Myanmar Railways’ tracks. We had ordered a diesel helper for all the days – but as it quickly turned out, we didn’t need it except to save fuel and the transport of an oil bunker to feed our locomotives. Train From Yangon Central Railway Station, Yangon, Myanmar. The day before the group arrived, I went to the railway station and the depot in Bago for an inspection of the available rolling stock. Our local guide could reject this odd request, fortunately. Currently, Japanese companies are involved in the development of Myanmar Railways, but it seems that MR doesn’t realise that they have a massive problem - an immense need for investment, structural reform and consultation. The fears that something could go wrong seemed to be more present in the headquarters than among us. The only alternative in investing in the infrastructure of the railways is the permanent traffic jam in larger cities and the enormous disturbance of people who live near trunk roads. Myanmar Railways have a small museum in Naypyitaw, but it’s almost always closed. But time is running out. In Pyuntaza we saw all the locos which were collected there in spring 2008: In Pyuntaza, we needed to turn our locomotive on the refurbished triangle. Fifteen […], Subscribe to our tender alert mailing list Republic of the Union of Myanmar Ministry of Rail Transportation Myanma Railway Invitation for open tender for maintenance of new Passenger express train 1. As we became aware of the blow of a steam whistle in the dark of the next morning, we knew that our locomotive had awoken after nine years, for its mission. As the sun was high in the sky we let the diesel haul our train to Pyuntaza and went ahead of the train in our charter bus to the depot. Despite my fears, everything was prepared neatly by the state railway. April 24 th, 2008, all of a sudden Burma ’s state railway stopped all steam operations. Of course, we came up with several wishes for future tours. While in Burma, I tried to figure out why they’re drying up their flow of hard currency. Buy Myanmar train tickets in advance. But I rate this as a soft answer and wait for a written confirmation before I’ll publish the next itinerary. We persuaded them to convert YC 629 from coal to oil burning. Hospital 085 - 22720. It’s not only about the steam locomotives, Myanmar Railways are going to modernise their railway. The train tickets can be purchased at the Myanmar Central Railway Station before departure and can be book via GEM Travel and Tours. To avail this service, railway passengers will have to call 139 and provide basic information like their PNR number, name of the railway station, STD code of the railway station. After this very successful tour, I went again to Naypyitaw to the headquarters of the railway. The GM even doesn’t like to talk to the ministry, not even on the phone! So far the prices they’ve asked for special trains are: 7,500 US-Dollars for just a short charter train on the probably most boring section of Myanma Railways (Pyuntaza – Nyaunglebin) and 21,000 US-Dollars for a train to Mottama. Our Mother company Green Myanmar Travel & Tours Co., Ltd is running the tour business since 2012 and serving to thousands of bookings to millions of travellers already. Book online for instant Confirmation and 24/7 Live Support! Mandalay Railway Station: 05024: 02-4064900-Ground Floor, Mandalay Railway Station: 12: Chanayethazan: Yonegyi (Chanayethazan) 05021: 02-4060540: 02-4061843: 70 Street, Between 29x30 Street, Government Department Compound: 13: Chanayethazan: Zaycho: 05023: 02-73308: 02-39545: No (2.Salein + 4.Kha), 26 Street, Between 83x84 Street: 14: Chanmyathazi: Chanmyathazi: 05041: 02 … And finally, with every solution we put on the table, the railways came up with a new problem. 085 - 22525. But there is still a great opportunity for authentic – real – freight trains. *** For certain trips only, discount already reflected in the ticket price itself (i.e. Our train reached Bago well after dusk and so we asked whether it would be thinkable to add a charter train to the programme, allowing us to take a picture of one of the master shots of the main line. Finally, our guide flew to Burma in December 2016, two weeks before the tour start, and was able to clarify everything on the spot. The airport in Yangon can’t be extended. YB 508 had its last overhaul in 2001, but it was out of use already by 2007, only YB 534 is complete and in a good state. 3 gold seizures in 3 days at Patna station confirm new smuggling modus operandi The back-to-back seizures have revealed that smugglers from states such as … Marketing is invisible and the ancient structures of the railways don’t fit the new times. Why not overhaul a YB? YB 534 reached its plinth under its own steam. everything which makes this a traditional looking main line. SAVE UP TO 75% OFF hotels near Train, Metro and Bus Stations in Nay Pyi Taw. In the cabs the railwaymen placed candles on the cut off wheel, the vacuum brake and the water gauge. Only the speed of implementation of new technology gives us the hope that we’ll see semaphores in Bago until 2010.”. The last shock came in November 2016 as another wagon list appeared which showed again wagons which we didn’t need. Then finally he was listening to our proposals. Discount hotels near Nay Pyi Taw Railway Station, Nay Pyi Taw. MR will finalise the selection of winners for the project in May, said U Tun Aung Thin, General Manager of Myanma Railways (Lower Myanmar). Yangon, Myanmar (Burma) Since its original construction in 1877, Yangon Central Railway Station has served as an important transportation link for the Burmese people. The first really big project since the inauguration of the bridge between Mottama and the Ye-line will cost the railways another precious six years until it’s completed (if there are no delays). MR (IR) No. (function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';fnames[1]='FNAME';ftypes[1]='text';fnames[2]='LNAME';ftypes[2]='text';fnames[3]='ADDRESS';ftypes[3]='address';fnames[4]='PHONE';ftypes[4]='phone';fnames[5]='BIRTHDAY';ftypes[5]='birthday';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true); Copyright © 2020 — Consult-Myanmar Co Ltd, Myanmar Co Reg No: 100066009, • All rights reserved. Myanmar train station guides. By Nan Lwin 14 May 2019 . The workshop is just 50 miles further south in Insein. ... ** Only applicable for transactions without the use of discount code and trips offered by certain companies. The Ministry of Construction and Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) have stated that Myanmar’s rail network requires an investment of USD1.82 … Click here to return to FarRail Tours. The network, generally spanning north to south with branch lines to the east and west, is the second largest in Southeast Asia, [citation needed] and includes the Yangon Circular Railway which serves as a commuter railway for Yangon, the principal commercial city in Myanmar. Not only that the tour was extremely successful from the view point of a photographer, but there are also promising projects for the future. I don’t know any other railway tour operator who was and is willing to spend many tens of thousands of Euros over a nine year period (some don’t even exist that long without disappearing into insolvency) in the vague hope that the state railway would agree to the suggestions and wishes, and this also at a price which could attract tour participants. As we handed over the list of wagons we wanted they came back – after several weeks – with a different list of wagons. The railways gave us permission to visit large freight yards and their workshop to find appropriate wagons, but they didn’t allow us to take photographs there. Especially, the wagon problem cost a lot of time and persuading skills, and of course money. But after just three months, they informed us that there were changes necessary; these and those are not working, we’re now offering the following wagons … wagons we didn’t need and didn’t want. So it was a good decision to start with the blessing of the locomotives. Bago (Pegu), Myanmar. After this, the state railway was finally open to new ideas … for trains in a “FarRail Tours style”. The passenger coaches didn’t only receive a new paint coat, they also overhauled them completely. Guide to train travel in Myanmar. Religious society someone should do it if you ’ re drying up their flow of hard.. 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