Five vehicle-train collisions have taken place in the Mon State after a train travelling from Dawei to Yangon collided with a logging truck near Wea-thon-chaung Village in the Mon State’s Than-byu-zayat Township on Friday (February 16) evening.
Although no causalities have been reported in the collision between the express train no DD 939 and the logging truck, a monk passed away after a train clashed with a vehicle driven by him in Kwei-wan Village in Mudon Township two weeks ago.
Three vehicle-train collisions took place between Paung and Kywe-chan Station, between Than-byu-zayat and Pa-nga Station, and between Pa-nga and Karupi stations last month, resulting in one casualty.
U Maung Zaw, deputy manager of the Mon State Rail Transportation, blamed illegal crossings through railroad tracks causing vehicle-train collisions and harming public lives.
“There shouldn’t be two gates within a mile according to the provisions of the Railways Act so there aren’t any doors at the illegal crossings in the villages. But, we have erected the warning signs (stop, look, and go) to warn the public,” said U Maung Zaw.
There are over 80 illegal railway crossings in the Mon State. Myanmar Railways and the Ministry of Transport and Communications have held public awareness-raising talks and distributed pamphlets to warn the public to take precautions and follow the rules before passing through the railway crossings.
