Myawady border bridge to extend opening hours

The opening hours of the Myawady-Mae Sot Friendship Bridge will be extended for the convenience of travellers, according to border officials.

As one of the border gates between Myanmar and Thailand, the bridge connects the border towns of Myawady with Mae Sot, Tak Province.

"We have received an official instruction letter from the [Kayin] State government to extend the opening hours of the Friendship Bridge for the convenience of travellers from both countries. The Myanmar side is ready. We are now negotiating with [Thailand]," said an official from Myawady Bridge, who requested not to be named.

Regular opening hour is from 6 am to 6 pm but the Kayin State government has recently allowed the bridge to be opened from 5 am to 8 pm.

The extension of the opening hours of the bridge will allow foreign tourists to cross the border in time if they arrive at the bridge after the normal opening hours due to heavy traffic on the mountain road that crosses the Dawna range. It will also be more convenient for Myanmar workers, shoppers and vendors who commute daily between the borders.

Construction of the Myawady-Mae Sot Friendship Bridge started in 1994 at a cost of Bt 79.2 and it was opened in 1997. It was temporarily closed from March 28 to April 3 in 2007 due to the import of illegal cars. It was temporarily closed again on July 2010 due to Thailand’s river bank protection construction project on the Mae Sot side of the Thaungyin (Moei) River. The bridge again reopened in December 2011.

source: Eleven Myanmar

http://elevenmyanmar.com/tourism/4233-myawady-border-bridge-to-extend-opening-hours