RANGOON — Rangoon Public Bus Company launched on Monday, with 18 vehicles in service plying a route from Htauk Kyant Junction down Pyay Road, in what is being touted as comprising Burma’s first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system.
The new bus service is being billed as an initiative to reduce traffic congestion and improve the standard of public transportation in the commercial capital. The fare is 300 kyat and passengers can purchase prepaid cards with a value of 1,000, 3,000, 5,000 or 10,000 kyat from a bus company employee.
The buses run daily from 6 am to 9:30 pm.
Maung Aung, an adviser to the Ministry of Commerce who leads a committee responsible for forming the public company, told The Irrawaddy last month that they will expand the routes with the arrival of more buses to be imported from China, South Korea and Sweden.