User:JaventheAlderick/Yangon Central Railway Station

Yangon Central railway station (ရန်ကုန် ဘူတာကြီး ), also known as Yangon Central Station, is the largest railway station in Myanmar. It is located within downtown Yangon, and serves as the gateway to Myanmar Railways' 3126 mi rail network whose reach covers Upper Myanmar (Naypyidaw, Mandalay, Shwebo), upcountry (Myitkyina), Shan hills (Taunggyi, Kalaw), and the Taninthayi coast (Mawlamyine, Ye).

The station was first built in 1877 by the British, and was later rebuilt in 1911. However, the station was destroyed by the retreating British in 1943 from advancing Japanese forces. The current station building was designed by U Tin in traditional Burmese architectural style, making prominent use of indigenous tiered roofs called pyatthat, and was completed on 5 June 1954. Yangon Central railway station has been designated a landmark building since 1996.

Lines
The following lines pass through or terminate at Yangon Central:
 * Yangon Circular Railway
 * Yangon–Mandalay railway
 * Yangon–Mawlamyaing railway
 * Yangon–Bagan railway
 * Yangon–Aunglan–Bagan railway
 * Yangon–Pyay railway

History
Yangon Central railway station was first built in 1877 by the British to support Burma's first railway line, from Yangon to Pyay. The station was located on the southern side of the railway compound on the upper block of Phayre Street (now Pansodan Street) in the downtown area. The building was designed in the British Victorian style and the access roads were bordered by grassy lawns. The beauty of the property prompted locals to praise the new structure as the Fairy Station. The station became a favorite target for Japanese bombers during World War II. In 1943 it was destroyed by British forces retreating to India.

The station was rebuilt following the war according to a design based on Burmese traditional architectural styles, drawn by engineer Hla Thwin. The new structure was 5110 m2 in size. To the north were grass lawns, gardens and wide access lanes. The new design was approved by the Railway Authority on 7 May 1946. Construction was started in January 1947 by engineer Sithu U Tin and completed in May 1954 at a total cost of K4.75 million. The opening ceremony of the new Yangon Central railway station was held on 5 June 1954.

The structure is listed on the Yangon City Heritage List.

Future plans
In December 2007, the Yangon city government announced a master plan that would have resulted in Yangon Central being relocated to a satellite town, East Dagon, 32 km from downtown Yangon at an unspecified date; this did not come to fruition.