Between 1939 and 1956 Wickham delivered around 78 railcars to Burma Railways, twelve were armoured for usage against rebel insurgencies, a further eight used armoured Wickhams were purchased from Malaysia Railways in 1970. Some Wickham railcars were still in use in 2011, especially as inspection cars, some also formed the base for self-constructed railcars.

For a long time hardly any railcars except the Wickhams were used by Burma Railways. Only after finishing the Yangon Circle Line in 1958 several batches of diesel railcars were purchased between 1961 and 1963. 21 diesel railcars of type 'B'B'+2'2'+B'B' were ordered from German manufacturer Talbot, two of type 'B'B'+2'2'+2'2'+B'B' were purchased from Hungarian manufacturer Ganz-Mavag. However delivered with fixed window glasses and without air-condition, they were all but useful for the Burmese climate and were taken out of service very quickly. The Talbot railcars were transformed into simple passenger coaches without window glasses and were still used in locomotive-pulled circle line trains in Yangon in 2011.

The quick expansion of the railway network in the 1990s as well as a severe lack of diesel locomotives due to sanctions and economic problems required Myanmar Railways to construct their own railcars. They were often based on the frame and engine of old Hino trucks, power transmission was done using rubber tires. The body was welded using parts from scrapped locomotives and passenger coaches. Thus every railcar has its own individual design. Some inspection cars were built on the base of armoured Wickham railcars which were taken out of service. Around 100 self-constructed railcars were in service, mostly for local trains on secondary lines. The life-span of the railcars was often quite short. By 2014 only 14 were still in service, by 2016 all were taken out of official service due to decreasing traffic demands and high influx of Japanese railcars (see next chapter).

Starting from 2003, Myanma Railways purchased used Kiha diesel railcars. At the beginning the railcars were purchased from private railways in Japan, where the railcars had been taken out of service. Later the Japanese Railway (especially JR Hokkaido, JR West and JR Tokai) sold railcars which were taken out of service to Myanmar. After re-gauging from cape gauge to metre gauge, they are used not only for local traffic, but also for long-distance trains. In 2009 I was travelling around 14 hours in such a railcar from Mandalay to Bago. Alongside the re-gauging, additional changes are made to the railcars: additional steps are added as Myanma Railways has either very low or no platforms at all, air condition equipment and other installations which exceed the Myanmar railway loading gauge are removed. More than 250 railcars found their way to Myanmar, several are already out of service, and some of the railcars might have never been in service. There are two very good Japanese internet pages with lots of pictures from Japanese railcars in Myanmar: http://www.rbemania.com and http://www.2427junction.com.

The Yangon harbour line from Pazundaung to Kemmendine connected the wharves on the southern rim of Yangon with the rest of the railway network. As traffic was shrinking and the port operations were transferred to a new deep sea port in Thilawa south of Yangon, the line was partly dismantled. On the 7th of December 2014 Myanma Railways had rebuilt the line and opened it for passenger services which were operated with used Japanese diesel railcars RBE.3001 and RBE.3002. Passenger services were stopped in September 2015 and the line was transformed into a tramway by adding a third rail for normal gauge and overhead wires for electrification. This was the first electric railway in Myanmar operated by the Government (there had been private electric trams in Yangon and Mandalay before WW II). Passenger services were re-instantiated in February 2016 with three used tram cars from Japanese Hiroshima Tramways. However services were suspended a few months later on the 30th June 2016 due to problems with power supply and meagre passenger numbers.

66 railcars ranging from inspection cars to rail grinders were delivered by Wickham directly to Burma Railways. It is unclear how the railcars were numbered and whether they received a detail classification. At least some of them were still in use in 2011.

 

 

Civil war and rebel insurgencies started with the independence in 1947 and some still continue today. Thus, in 1956 Burma Railways purchased twelve armoured rail cars from Wickham. In 1970, a further eight used armoured Wickham railcars were purchased from Malaysia where insurgencies starting in the 1950s had ceased. In 2007 some of the railcars were still in use on the southern line from Bago to Mottama and further down to Dawei. Some of the railcars delivered in 1956 were transformed to normal inspection cars (see class DRC).

 

 

After finishing the Yangon Circle Line in 1958 21 diesel railcars of type B'B'+2'2'+B'B' were ordered from German manufacturer Talbot. The at that time very modern railcars with closed windows were delivered between 1961 and 1963. However the railcars were too modern, the Burma Railways were unable to properly maintain the railcars and the missing air-condition along with closed windows prevented proper usage of the railcars. Quite soon the engines and the cabins were removed and the railcars were transformed into normal passenger coaches which were used in locomotive pulled Circle Line trains. I could still spot them in 2011.

 

 

Alongside the railcars from Talbot, the Burma Railways had also ordered two railcars of type 'B'B'+2'2'+2'2'+B'B' from Hungarian manufacturer Ganz-Mavag. The railcars proved to be even less useful than the Talbot railcars and were taken out of service very soon, they were even not transformed into normal passenger coaches as it was done with the Talbot railcars.

 

 

There is an image dated from September 1987 which shows a two Hino busses put on rails at Thazi station. One of them is numbered as MRBX 402. I don’t have any further information whether further railcars of this type existed and when they were built.

 

 

The quick expansion of the railway network in the 1990s as well as severe lack of diesel locomotives due to sanctions and economic problems required Myanmar Railways to construct their own railcars for usage on local lines or local trains on main lines. It seems that 78 railcars classified as LRBE ("Light rail bus engine") were built between 1995 and 2003, most of them with type 1A1. Basement of the construction were Hino trucks which were put on two railway axles. The back axles of the truck are trimmed to metre gauge, the rubber tires are kept and used for power friction. The body is made from parts of scrapped passenger coaches or busses. Thus each railcar has its own layout and design. Up to three short self-made passenger coaches were attached to the railcar, all without brakes. Most of the railcars themselves didn’t have any brakes, only the engine was used to brake. I was allowed to drive such a railcar for several hundred metres between Madauk and Nyaungkashe in December 2011. Naturally, the adventurous construction was not reliable for longer usage. By 2014 only 14 LRBE railcars were left in service, by 2016 nearly all were replaced by the Japanese railcars (RBE classes), some are kept as reserve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some attempts for building larger railcars than the class LRBE were made by simply putting two Hino busses on rails and adding a self-made passenger coach in between. Overall six at Ywataung workshop self-constructed railcars of type 1A'2'+2'2'+2'A1' were put into service between 2001 and 2006. The first two railcars were initially used on local lines around Yangon, later they were shifted to Monywa region alongside the four other railcars and operated trains between Mandalay, Monywa, Khin-U and Shwebo. After some time often only two cars instead of all three cars were used. By 2014 only two were left in service, in 2016 all railcars were stored out of service in Tin Tein Yan near Khin-U.

 

 

In 2001 another four railcars were built out of parts from scrapped locomotive and passenger coaches. Not much is known about these railcars. It seems that two of them were still in use in 2014.

 

 

Some of the older armoured Wickham railcars (DCA 8501 – 8512) were transferred into normal railcars mostly used for inspection rides. Some sources mention four railcars numbered MCA.16 (“Motor Car Armour”) and EMC.26 to EMC.28 (“Engineering Motor Car”), other sources mention two railcars DRC.101 and DRC.102. .

 

 

Starting from 2003 Myanma Railways purchased used Kiha diesel railcars which were put out of service in Japan. All railcars with an approx. power of 250hp were classified as RBE.25 irrespective of type and model. At the beginning the used railcars were purchased from private railways in Japan, later from subsidiaries of Japan Railways like JR East and JR Hokkaido also provided used Kiha railcars (Kiha 38, 40, 47, 48, 141) to Myanma Railways. Some of the railcars were transformed into VIP inspection cars, the others are used for local as well as for long distance services. Up to 2015 127 RBE.25 railcars were put into service after being re-gauged at Myanma Railways workshops from cape to metre gauge. Most of the railcars are still in service..

 

 

In 2005 Myanma Railways purchased a diesel railcar from private Japanese Ise Railway which was classified as RBT.828. The railcar was only used as an inspection car and is meanwhile stored out of service at Myitnge workshop. It is unclear why this single railcar was classified as RBT. Other railcars from Ise Railway of same type were classified as RBE.25.

 

 

In 2005 Japan Railways subsidiary West sold twelve diesel railcars of type Kiha 58 built in the 1960’s to Myanma Railways. They were initially used for express train services to the new capital Naypidaw, later they were transferred to Yangon for local train services. After a few years they were put out of service and are stored in Myitnge workshop.

 

 

In 2008 Myanma Railways received the first 20 Kiha railcars (Kiha 52 and 58) with a power of approx. 500hp from Japan Railways subsidiary East which were classified as RBE.50. Around one year later another eight railcars of type Kiha 183 were provided by JR Hokkaido. In 2013 another 25 railcars of type Kiha 142, 181 and km 180 from JR West and JR Hokkaido followed, making the overall number of RBE.50 railcars to 53. Some of the railcars kept their air-condition and thus received and additional P in the classification (RBE.P2059 – RBE.P5043).

 

 

In 2009/10 Myanma Railways purchased type Kiha 183 railcars from Japan Railways subsidiary Hokkaido. It was planned to use the railcars for express trains between Mandalay and the new capital Naypidaw. After re-gauging and alterations (additional steps, removal of rooftop installations due to railway loading gauge restrictions while keeping the air-condition) some were used for the planned express services. After services were suspended in 2012, the railcars were put out of service and stored at Myitnge workshop. Other railcars never seemed to be altered and put into service in Myanmar. Numbering seems to have overlaps with class RBE.25, numbering also is unclear to me.

 

 

In 2009 Myanma Railways purchased three railcars from private Japanese railway Sanriku Railways and classified them as RBE.30. Another two railcars were purchased from Sanriku Railways in 2015 alongside 28 railcars from Japan Railways subsidiary Tokai and one from private Ihara Railways. Another 23 railcars followed one year later, again provided by JR Tokai, making the overall number of class RBE.30 railcars to 57.

 

 

The web page www.rbemania.com lists another two railcars of type Kiha 40 and 48 classified as DMU.8 which were provided by JR Tokai. It is unclear why those two railcars have received a different classification, other Kiha 40 and 48 railcars from JR Tokai were classified as RBE.30.

 

 

The short-lived electric tramway of Myanma Railways along the Yangon port line used three electric normal gauge tram cars from Hiroshima Tramways. They were classified as TCE (“Tram Car Electric”). Hiroshima tram car no. 772 with a length of 13.7m and 40 km/h maximum speed received number TCE.701. Since service on the tram line has been suspended after a few months, the tram car is stored under a roof at Wan Dan.

 

 

Alongside TC.701 another two used tram cars from Hiroshima Tramways with a length of 25.25m and a maximum speed of 60km/h were purchased by Myanma Railways for use on the Yangon harbor line tramway. They were classified as TC.3000. While TC.3001 was used throughout the short-lived service on the line, TC.3002 was most probably never used and was rather kept for spare parts. After suspension of the services, both tram cars are stored at Wan Dan station (3001 under a roof, 3002 partly under plastic covers).