THE strong earthquake that struck on 28 March damaged 60 embankments and 11 railway bridges along the Yangon-Mandalay railway line, and caused the tracks to bend in some places. Myanma Railways has announced that it is urgently repairing the damage using manpower, machinery, and effective logistics.
Myanma Railways tested the track’s strength with freight trains on 3 April and the speed of passenger trains on 4 April. After confirming the trains were safe to run, passenger train operations resumed on the morning of 5 April.
Regarding the re-routing, the first trains departing from Yangon are the No 11 Up Express to Mandalay at 5 am and the No 7 Up DEMU Express to Nay Pyi Taw at 6 am. Likewise, the first express trains departing from Mandalay are the No 12 Down Express to Yangon at 5 am and the No 28 Down Express to Nay Pyi Taw at 6 am. Additionally, the No 8 Down DEMU Express departs for Yangon at 12:30 pm, and the No 27 Up Airbag Express departs for Mandalay at 1:30 pm. The Yangon-Pyay and Yangon-Mawlamyine routes are also operated regularly every day.
The aviation sector has been permitted to operate domestic flights to Mandalay International Airport since 4 April. As of 5 April, four domestic airlines have conducted a total of 13 flights, transporting 399 inbound passengers and 573 outbound passengers, totalling 972 passengers.
Ministry of Transport and
Communications
