Sittwe University-bound train to operate with additional coach

By DMG 21 May 2022

DMG Newsroom
21 May 2022, Sittwe 

As of next week, Myanma Railways (MR) in the Arakan State capital Sittwe will add one more coach to the train running between Pyitawthar and Yaychanpyin for the convenience of teachers and students at Sittwe University, according to a MR official. 

The Sittwe MR route is currently running the train with only one coach, and it will operate with two RBE (rail bus engine) coaches. The MR headquarters sent three RBE coaches from Yangon for the operation, said the MR official. 

“Headquarters sent the coaches for the convenience of students and teachers from Sittwe University. We will examine those coaches and we hope to put them into operation Monday thereafter,” said the official. 

The coaches were transported from Yangon Port on May 16 and arrived in Sittwe on May 20. 

It would be more convenient for students if Myanma Railways arranges student- and teacher-only coaches, said university student Ko Tun Thiha. 

“I was told by a MR staff member that a separate coach will be arranged for students. Previously, we had to take the same coach with others and when they carried goods including bad-smelling things, it was not very convenient for us,” he said. 

The Pyitawthar-Yaychanpyin train route had been suspended since 2019 and only resumed operations on March 24 of this year. By April 27, there were 13,541 commuters, but the cost of operations was significantly exceeding its revenue from fares, according to an MR official in Sittwe. 

About 400 commuters, some 80 of them being students, take the train daily. Ticket fares range from 50 kyats to 150 kyats, depending on distance travelled.