Mizzima News

New Delhi – Burmese authorities in Rangoon said it will revoke the license of over 400 World War II vintage Chevrolet buses, which are unique to the city.

'All Routes Commuter Bus Authority' has commenced plans to replace the Chevrolet buses with a wooden body with a modern fleet of buses on Rangoon roads.

Japanese made City Buses will replace the old buses to ease traffic jams, an official of the Bus Authority told Mizzima on condition of anonymity.

"We will use the City Bus. Most of them are made in Japan. The old buses can accommodate few people. The new buses can carry more people and will help ease traffic jams in the downtown area. We need only one new bus instead of two old buses for that area," he said.

The main idea is to better the capacity which the new City Buses will provide compared to the old buses though the engines of these old ones are still in good shape, the official said.

"We have been replacing the buses since June 1 with the new buses that we have got. We will continue replacing as and when we get the new buses. It depends on the money we receive. We already have over 60 new buses," he said.

The fare in the new buses is Kyat 200 per head like the 'Parimi' buses. The number of passengers on the new buses is limited to its seating capacity. If buses are found carrying passengers standing, action will be taken against the drivers, the official said.

However the old Chevrolet buses can still be seen plying on the roads in Rangoon suburbs such as Thaketa, South Dagon and North Dagon.

There are a total of 5,000 buses plying on Rangoon roads.