Survey finds high demand for better transit in Yangon

Published on Tuesday, 22 January 2013 19:41

Yangon residents want better public transit, more roads and repairs made to existing ones, to reduce traffic jams, a survey of about 10,000 households of the metropolitan area found.

The survey will be used to draft a strategic urban development plan for the Greater Yangon, officials told Eleven Media. It was conducted by the Yangon City Development Committee and Japan International Cooperation Agency.

More than 70 percent of the households surveyed rely on buses to get to work and for other activities, an interim report on the strategic plan said.

About one-quarter of those surveyed also called for better public transport nation-wide, officials said.

Yangon is facing traffic jams for the first time due to a dramatic increase in the number of new vehicles over the past year, following a deep fall in import taxes. Other reasons for traffic congestion of roads are too narrow or in disrepair, residents said in the survey.

Upgrading of major roads such as Bogyoke, Yekyaw, Yeytarshay and U Chit Maung is about 80 percent complete, officials said.

Until last year, most of the city’s taxis were barely functioning Japanese models from the 1960s and 1970s. They were known for rattling noises and emissions of thick smoke when working. These taxis have been replaced by Chinese-made Chery QQ compacts, primarily those painted in vivid shades of red, yellow and blue.