
The government of
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
(earlier known as Burma) has two ministries controlling transportation, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Rail Transport.
Road

''total:''
''paved:''
''unpaved:'' (2006)
The main highways are as follows:
*
1 – Runs from
Yangon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
to
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
, passing through
Bago
Bago may refer to:
Places Myanmar
* Bago, Myanmar, a city and the capital of the Bago Region
* Bago District, a district of the Bago Region
* Bago Region an administrative region
* Bago River, a river
* Bago Yoma or Pegu Range, a mountain range
...
,
Taungoo,
Pyinmana and
Meiktila
Meiktila (; ) is a city in central Burma on the banks of Meiktila Lake in the Mandalay Region at the junctions of the Bagan-Taunggyi, Yangon-Mandalay and Meiktila-Myingyan highways. Because of its strategic position, Meiktila is home to Myanmar Ai ...
.
*
2 – Runs from
Yangon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
to
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
, passing through
Pyay
Pyay (, ; mnw, ပြန် , ; also known as Prome and Pyè) is principal town of Pyay Township in the Bago Region in Myanmar. Pyay is located on the bank of the Irrawaddy River, north-west of Yangon. It is an important trade center for the Aye ...
,
Magwe,
Kyaukpadaung
Kyaukpadaung ( my, ကျောက်ပန်းတောင်းမြို့ ) is a town in Mandalay Region in Central Myanmar. It lies just south-west of Mount Popa. It is the administrative seat for Kyaukpadaung Township.
History
The nam ...
and
Myingyan.
*
3 – Runs from
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
to
Muse
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the ...
, on the border with China, passing through
Lashio.
*
4 – Runs from
Meiktila
Meiktila (; ) is a city in central Burma on the banks of Meiktila Lake in the Mandalay Region at the junctions of the Bagan-Taunggyi, Yangon-Mandalay and Meiktila-Myingyan highways. Because of its strategic position, Meiktila is home to Myanmar Ai ...
to
Tachileik
Tachileik (also spelt Tachilek; my, တာချီလိတ်, ; shn, တႃႈၶီႈလဵၵ်း, ; th, ท่าขี้เหล็ก, , ), is a border town in the Shan State of eastern Myanmar. It is the administrative seat of Tac ...
, on the border with
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
, passing through
Taunggyi and
Kengtung.
*
5 – Runs from
Taungoo to
Hopong, passing through
Loikaw.
*
6 – Runs from
Yangon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
to
Pathein
Pathein (, ; mnw, ဖာသီ, ), formerly called Bassein, is the largest city and the capital of the Ayeyarwady Region, Myanmar (Burma). It is located 190 km (120 mi) west of Yangon within Pathein Township on the bank of the Pathei ...
.
*
7 – Runs from
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
to
Moreh
Givat HaMoreh (Hebrew: גבעת המוֹרֶה), in Arabic: Jebel ed-Duhy, is a hill in northern Israel on the northeast side of the Jezreel Valley. The highest peak reaches an altitude of , while the bottom of the Jezreel Valley is situated at ...
, on the border with India, passing through
Shwebo and
Kale
Kale (), or leaf cabbage, belongs to a group of cabbage (''Brassica oleracea'') cultivars grown for their edible leaves, although some are used as ornamentals. Kale plants have green or purple leaves, and the central leaves do not form a head ...
.
*
8 – Runs from
Hpagyargyi to
Myeik, passing through
Moulmein,
Ye and
Dawei
Dawei (, ; mnw, ဓဝဲါ, ; th, ทวาย, RTGS: ''Thawai'', ; formerly known as Tavoy) is a city in south-eastern Myanmar and is the capital of the Tanintharyi Region, formerly known as the Tenasserim Division, on the northern bank of ...
.
*
12– Runs from
Tada-U
Tada-U or Tadau is a town in central Myanmar about from the provincial capital of Mandalay.
Transport
It is served by a branch line of the Myanmar Railways built in 1994. Tada Oo- Myotha Railway Line is end in Pyithayar Station(Gwaykone) ...
to
Myingyan, passing through
Gwekon, and
Myotha.
*
31 – Runs from
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
to
Myitkyina, passing through
Mogok and
Bhamo.
There is one expressway in the country, which features double carriageway and four lanes on its entire length:
*
Yangon-Mandalay Expressway – Runs from
Yangon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
to
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
, by-passing
Bago
Bago may refer to:
Places Myanmar
* Bago, Myanmar, a city and the capital of the Bago Region
* Bago District, a district of the Bago Region
* Bago Region an administrative region
* Bago River, a river
* Bago Yoma or Pegu Range, a mountain range
...
,
Taungoo,
Naypyidaw
Naypyidaw, officially spelled Nay Pyi Taw (; ), is the capital and third-largest city of Myanmar. The city is located at the centre of the Naypyidaw Union Territory. It is unusual among Myanmar's cities, as it is an entirely planned city outs ...
and
Meiktila
Meiktila (; ) is a city in central Burma on the banks of Meiktila Lake in the Mandalay Region at the junctions of the Bagan-Taunggyi, Yangon-Mandalay and Meiktila-Myingyan highways. Because of its strategic position, Meiktila is home to Myanmar Ai ...
. Length:365 miles (587 km).
The other highways are as follows:
*
Wonnral Road – Runs from
Naungte to
Retphaw, by- passing
Hlagazaing,
Myohaung,
Duk Daw Nain,
Kale, Kayin State,
Tagondaing,
Tamoowoug,
Taungdi,
Kyongawon,
Phabya,
Paya and
Ta Nyin. Length: 35 miles (55 km).
In 2017, Yangon launched a bus network system that would reduce traffic and commute time of some two million commuters in the city.
Rail

, Myanmar had of railways, all gauge. There are currently no rail links to adjacent countries.
Water

; navigable by large commercial vessels. (2008)
Belmond Ltd operates its business in
Ayeyarwady River
The Irrawaddy River ( Ayeyarwady River; , , from Indic ''revatī'', meaning "abounding in riches") is a river that flows from north to south through Myanmar (Burma). It is the country's largest river and most important commercial waterway. Origi ...
by the name ''Road to Mandalay River Cruise''.
Irrawaddy Flotilla Company
The Irrawaddy Flotilla Company (IFC) was a passenger and cargo ferry company, which operated services on the Irrawaddy River in Burma, now Myanmar. The IFC was Scottish-owned, and was managed by P Henderson & Company from Glasgow. The IFC operated ...
was also in service along the Ayeyarwady River in the 20th century, until 1942, when the fleet was destroyed to prevent invading Japanese forces from making use of it. The IFC has since been revived as Pandaw, named for a salvaged original IFC ship, and is now one of the leading river cruise companies in the country.
Merchant marine
''total:''
24 ships (with a volume of or over) totalling /
''Ships by type:''
bulk carrier
A bulk carrier or bulker is a merchant ship specially designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo — such as grains, coal, ore, steel coils, and cement — in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrier was built in 1852, econom ...
1,
cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...
17,
passenger ship
A passenger ship is a merchant ship whose primary function is to carry passengers on the sea. The category does not include cargo vessels which have accommodations for limited numbers of passengers, such as the ubiquitous twelve-passenger freig ...
2, passenger/cargo 3, specialised tanker 1 (2008)
''note:''
a
flag of convenience
Flag of convenience (FOC) is a business practice whereby a ship's owners register a merchant ship in a ship register of a country other than that of the ship's owners, and the ship flies the civil ensign of that country, called the flag state ...
registry; includes ships of 3 countries: Cyprus 1, Germany 1, Japan 1
Ports and harbours
;Sea
*
Yangon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
*
Sittwe (Akyab)
*
Dawei
Dawei (, ; mnw, ဓဝဲါ, ; th, ทวาย, RTGS: ''Thawai'', ; formerly known as Tavoy) is a city in south-eastern Myanmar and is the capital of the Tanintharyi Region, formerly known as the Tenasserim Division, on the northern bank of ...
– railhead – new deepwater port under construction 2005
;River
*
Myitkyina
*
Bhamo
*
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
*
Pakokku
Pakokku ( my, ပခုက္ကူမြို့, ) is the largest city in the Magway Region of Myanmar. It is situated about 30 km north-east of Bagan on the Irrawaddy River. It is the administration seat of Pakokku Township , Pakokku Distric ...
*
Pathein
Pathein (, ; mnw, ဖာသီ, ), formerly called Bassein, is the largest city and the capital of the Ayeyarwady Region, Myanmar (Burma). It is located 190 km (120 mi) west of Yangon within Pathein Township on the bank of the Pathei ...
Air
Airports
In July 2010, the country had 69 airports. Only 11 of them had runways over 2 miles (3250 meters). Of the 11, only
Yangon International ,
Mandalay International and
Naypyidaw International had adequate facilities to handle larger jets.
''total:'' 69
''over 3,047 metres (3333 yards):'' 11
''1524 to 3,047 metres (1666 yards to 3333 yards):'' 27
''Under 1524 metres (1666 yards):'' 31
Heliports
4
Pipelines
* Crude oil ; natural gas .
* Proposed pipe from
Kyaukphyu
Kyaukpyu ( my, ကျောက်ဖြူမြို့ ; also spelt Kyaukphyu) is a major town in Rakhine State, in western Myanmar. It is located on the north western corner of Yanbye Island on Combermere Bay, and is 250 miles (400 k ...
through
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
to
Kunming
Kunming (; ), also known as Yunnan-Fu, is the capital and largest city of Yunnan province, China. It is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province as well as the seat of the provincial government. The headquar ...
['' The Weekly Telegraph'' 23 January 2008 p17]
See also
*
Road Transport Authority (Myanmar)
*
Myanmar Railways
External links
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Transport in Burma