MYANMAR TRANSPORT SECTOR POLICY NOTE RURAL ROADS AND ACCESS ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK MYANMAR TRANSPORT SECTOR POLICY NOTE RURAL ROADS AND ACCESS ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license (CC BY 3.0 IGO) © 2016 Asian Development Bank 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City, 1550 Metro Manila, Philippines Tel +63 2 632 4444; Fax +63 2 636 2444 www.adb.org Some rights reserved. Published in 2016. Printed in the Philippines. ISBN 978-92-9257-455-0 (Print), 978-92-9257-456-7 (PDF) Publication Stock No. RPT168034-2 Cataloging-In-Publication Data Asian Development Bank. Myanmar transport sector policy note: Rural roads and access. Mandaluyong City, Philippines: Asian Development Bank, 2016. 1. Transport. 2. Rural access. 3. Myanmar. I. Asian Development Bank. The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. 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Corrigenda to ADB publications may be found at http://www.adb.org/publications/corrigenda The fiscal year of the Government of Myanmar begins on 1 April and ends on 31 March. “FY” before a calendar year denotes the year in which the fiscal year starts, e.g., FY2014 begins on 1 April 2014 and ends on 31 March 2015. Printed on recycled paper Contents Tables, Figures, and Boxes iv Foreword vi Acknowledgments viii Abbreviations ix Executive Summary x 1 Rural Access, Mobility, and Poverty in Myanmar 1 1.1 Rural Mobility, Poverty Alleviation, and Economic Development 2 1.2 Measuring Rural Access 7 2 Rural Transport Services 10 2.1 Operation and Function of Different Rural Transport Types 11 2.2 Rural Transport Costs and Prices 18 2.3 Safety and Security 22 2.4 Appropriateness of Transport Services 24 2.5 Regulation of Transport Services 25 2.6 Investing in Transport Services 27 3 Village Road Infrastructure 30 3.1 Road Network 30 3.2 Bridges 35 4 Village Road Management 37 4.1 Administrative Divisions 38 4.2 Agencies Involved in the Road Sector 38 5 Planning and Prioritization 43 5.1 Planning Targets in Use 44 5.2 Access Needs 45 5.3 Annual Planning 46 5.4 Construction and Improvement 49 5.5 Maintenance 50 5.6 Standards 51 6 Financing 53 6.1 Construction and Improvement 54 6.2 Maintenance 56 References 59 iii Tables, Figures, and Boxes Tables 1 Estimated Village Access Levels 8 2 Estimated Village Tract Access Levels 9 3 Illustrative Costs of Rural Transport Where No Conventional Transport Services Are Available 19 4 Illustrative Costs of Small Freight from Villages to Taunggyi, Shan State 19 5 Illustrative Costs of Interurban Transport on Narrow Paved Highways 21 6 National Fleet of Licensed Transport Service Vehicles, 2014 25 7 Licenses Issued to Transport Service Vehicles, 2014 26 8 Road Lengths by Road Type and Responsible Agency, 2013 31 9 Village Road Lengths by Surface Type and State and/or Region, 2013 32 10 Road Construction and Improvement by the Department of Rural Development 33 11 Interdistrict Roads 34 12 Number of Bridges by Type and State and/or Region, 2013 36 13 Bridge Construction by the Department of Rural Development 36 14 Ministry of Border Affairs Local Offices 41 15 Twenty-Year Plan for Roads 44 16 Twenty-Year Plan for Bridges 45 17 Planned Department of Rural Development Road and Bridge Works, 2014–2015 47 18 Department of Rural Development Budget Allocations for Roads and Bridges 54 19 Unit Costs for Construction and Improvement 55 20 Estimated Village Access Levels 56 21 Department of Rural Development Budget Allocations for Village Roads and Bridges, FY2014 57 22 Unit Costs for Special Maintenance 58 23 Unit Costs for Routine Maintenance 58 Figures 1 Carrying Goods from Market 2 2 Carrying Produce to Market 3 3 Eroded Trail Restricting Access 6 4 Interurban “Midi-Buses” that Pass through Rural Areas 11 5 Interurban Buses that Pass through Rural Areas 11 6 Interurban Minibuses that Pass through Rural Areas 12 7 “Dyna” Passenger Trucks Providing Rural Transport Services 12 8 “Hilux” Passenger and/or Freight Pickups Providing Rural Transport Services 13 9 Three-Wheelers Providing Village-to-Town Rural Transport Services 14 10 Tractor Transport Service 15 11 Photographs Illustrating the Importance of Motorcycles for Rural Transport 15 12 Photographs Illustrating the Importance of Bicycles for Rural Transport 16 iv Tables, Figures, and Boxesv 13 Horse Carriage 16 14 Photographs Illustrating the Importance of Oxcarts for Rural Transport 17 15 Pack Horses and Pack Mules 17 16 Photographs Illustrating the Importance of Small Boats for Rural Transport 18 17 A “Dyna” Truck with Many Passengers and their Freight 23 18 A “Hilux” Transporting Pupils 23 19 Concrete Trails for Motorcycles 29 20 Simple Earth Trails for Motorcycles 29 21 Trail Bridges in Nepal, Some of Which Can Be Used by Motorcycles 29 22 Road Lengths by Road Type and Responsible Agency, 2013 31 23 Village Road Lengths by Surface Type and State and/or Region, 2013 32 24 Interdistrict Road 2, Illustrating Bridge and Surface Problems 33 25 Alignment of Interdistrict Roads 1–3 34 26 Ministry of Livestock, Fisheries and Rural Development Organization Chart (until April 2016) 39 27 Department of Rural Development Organization Chart and Staff Numbers 39 28 Ministry of Border Affairs Organization Chart and Staff Numbers 40 29 Ministry of Border Affairs Activity Areas 40 30 Department of Progress of Border Areas and National Races Development Organization Chart 41 31 Ministry of Home Affairs Organization Chart 42 32 Example of Rural Access Planning Diagram for a Village Cluster in Shan State 48 33 Examples of Rural Access Planning Diagrams from Yunnan, People’s Republic of China 49 Boxes 1 Example of Poor Village Transport Affecting Livelihoods and Poverty in Shan State 4 2 Example of “Dyna”-Type Passenger-Freight Truck Operating Costs 20 3 Example of “Hilux” Passenger-Freight Pickup Operating Costs 21 4 Example of Passenger-Freight Three-Wheeler Operating Costs 22 5 Rural Transport Regulation in Pu’er, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China 26 6 The District Road Core Network Approach in Nepal 46 7 Annual Road Asset Management Planning in Nepal 50 8 Road Maintenance Groups in Yunnan Province, People’s Republic of China 51 Foreword yanmar is at a historic milestone in its transition into a market economy and democracy. After decades of isolation and stagnation, the country has, since 2011, been undergoing a fundamental Mpolitical, economic, and social transformation at unprecedented speed and scope. Achieving the country’s high growth potential will require continued reforms and structural transformation, especially in advancing major investments in infrastructure, developing relevant capacities and skills, and enhancing the business environment. This will enable Myanmar to reach the ranks of upper middle income economies by 2030. Due to massive underinvestment and neglect in recent history, Myanmar’s infrastructure lags behind its Association of Southeast Asian Nations neighbors, and hinders access to markets and social services. High transport costs and associated limited access to markets and services are among the main causes of poverty and regional inequality.