The journey time between the Kachin State towns of Myitkyina and Tanai (Danai) has gone from one day to being a multi day ordeal, because the road is so damaged.
The two towns are approximately 160km apart. Previously it took no longer than a day to travel the route, now it takes several days. As a result, fares to travel the route are more than ten times more expensive.
Previously, the fare for a passenger in a car or minivan was 30,000 MMK per person. Initially, fares rose to 100,000 MMK a person and now they have risen to 350,000 MMK a person.
Three sections of the road have been very badly damaged. One section is between the villages of Nawngmyi and Warazut in Hpakant Township. The other two very badly damaged sections are between the villages of Namphyat and Kawngra, also in Hpakant Township.
The road has been damaged by heavy rainfall during the wet season. Sections of the Myitkyina to Tanai Road began to deteriorate in June at the beginning of the rainy season and by August sections of the road were very badly damaged. The situation has been exacerbated by the heavy trucks that travel along the road.
A passenger who travelled along the road said to MNJ: “It is now impossible to predict how long it will take to travel from Tanai to Myitkyina. The journey usually takes 3 to 5 days, with passengers forced to spend nights on the road with no other option. Despite the arrival of winter, the rains have not stopped, and the road conditions remain poor. In some areas, the muddy water is knee-high.”
Passengers on the road are primarily carried by SUV’s and eight or 10 seat mini buses.
Sometimes vehicles on the road get stuck in large potholes full of mud and are unable to move. In these cases it is necessary for the driver to hire elephants, backhoes or trucks with cranes to put the car back on the road, at a cost of about 30,000 MMK.
One driver who shared his frustration at the condition of the road said that road conditions were so bad he had to hire an elephant to tow his car from Jahtuzup Village in Hpakant Township to Tanai Town at a cost of 900,000 MMK.
Due to the poor condition of the Myitkyina to Tanai road about 200 vehicles became stuck on the road in August and created a massive traffic jam.
