Myanmar Railways

Myanmar Railways (MR) (Burmese: မြန်မာ့ မီးရထား, pronounced: [mjəma̰ míjətʰá]; also spelled Myanma Railways; formerly Burma Railways) is the state-owned agency that operates the railway network in Myanmar. The 5,403-kilometre (3,357 mi) metre gauge rail network consists of 858 stations, and generally spans north to south with branch lines to east and west. MR also operates the Yangon Circular Railway line, Yangon's commuter rail network. MR operates 18 freight trains, and 379 passenger trains, transporting over 100,000 passengers daily.

The quality of the railway infrastructure is generally poor. Most remains in poor repair, and is not passable during the monsoon season. The speeds of freight trains are heavily restricted on all existing links as a consequence of poor track and bridge conditions. The maximum speed for freight trains has been quoted as 24 km/h (15 mph), suggesting that commercial speeds on this section could be as low as 12–14 km/h (7.5–8.7 mph).

MR has steadily increased the reach of its network in the last two decades, from nearly 3200 km in 1988 to 5403 km in 2010. MR is currently undertaking an ambitious expansion program that will add another 3,645 km (2,265 mi) to its network, including extensions to Myeik in the south, Kyaingtong in the east, Sittwe in the west. Also, conversion from metre gauge to standard gauge is proposed.