Bus passengers and companies told DVB that ticket prices have doubled on the Yangon-Naypyidaw and the Yangon-Mandalay route due to a rise in fuel prices triggered by war in the Middle East, since the U.S. and Israel launched its attacks on Iran on Feb. 28.
“I only travel when it’s absolutely necessary,” a bus passenger told DVB on the condition of anonymity at Yangon’s Aung Mingalar Bus Terminal. A bus owner told DVB on the condition of anonymity that ticket prices are expected to continue rising as long fuel prices go up.
Fares on the Yangon–Naypyidaw route increased from 21,000 to 45,000 MMK ($5-11 USD), while tickets for the Yangon–Mandalay route rose from 23,000 to 50,000 MMK ($5.70-12 USD) over the last week, according to Yangon residents.
Petrol station owners told DVB that prices for one liter of 92-octane gasoline rose from 2,534 to 2,830 MMK ($0.60-0.7 USD), 95-octane gasoline from 2,595 to 2,930 MMK ($0.60-0.70 USD), and diesel from 2,610 to 3,205 MMK ($0.60-0.80 USD) over the last week.
The regime announced on March 4 that Myanmar has a 40-day fuel reserve and will not face shortages despite disruptions to the global energy supply chain caused by the war in the Middle East.
The regime’s Ministry of Energy introduced a fuel rationing system at petrol stations in Yangon, Mandalay, Naypyidaw and the Shan State capital Taunggyi on March 11. It allows vehicle owners to buy fuel only once a day.
Under this system, vehicle owners don’t need to register themselves. Instead, fuel stations will automatically verify and screen purchases using an application issued by the ministry before selling fuel.
Vehicle owners and motorcyclists must provide documents for their vehicle registration tax, locally known as a wheel tax, issued by the regime’s Road Transport Administration Department to petrol station staff. The staff will issue a quick response (QR) code through the application to sell fuel after assessing the documents.
Motorists are required to keep the QR code to be able to purchase more fuel. But the code will record the vehicle’s information and bar it from being able to buy fuel until after 24 hours expire.
Under the regime’s fuel rationing system, motorcycles will be allowed to fill up with two liters, three-wheelers with four liters, and private cars with 12 liters of gasoline per day. For diesel, private cars and light trucks will be limited to 20 liters, while passenger and cargo vehicles will be allowed 50 liters.
Farmers in Ayeyarwady Region told DVB that they have to provide farmland ownership documents to buy fuel for tractors, harvesters and water pumping engines. Refueling is permitted once every other day, which reportedly causes inconvenience to their daily agricultural practices.
“One-third of the fuel I bought for my tractor is used up by travelling between the fuel station and my field,” a farmer in Ayeyarwady told DVB on the condition of anonymity.
Farmers in Bago Region told DVB that the cost of harvesting one acre of mung beans using machinery increased from 140,000 to 220,000 MMK ($35-55 USD) over the last month due to the rise in fuel prices.
Since March 7, private vehicles with even-numbered plates can only operate on even dates, while those with odd-numbered plates can operate on odd-numbered dates under the regime’s first attempt at fuel rationing.
