National Highway 2 (NH2) is a eastâÂÂwest flowing highway of central-western Burma.
National Highway 2 runs from National Highway 1 in Htone Khar to the Thai border at Maw Daung. The road passes through tropical rainforests and forms a lower link through the border mountains. Not far from the border crossing is the important Phet Kasem Road.
The original National Highway 2 was a much longer route from Yangon to Myittha, largely along the Irrawaddy River. The highway began at Satthwadaw, to the north of Yangon at where it is fed by the National Highway 1 and then branches off to the northwest. At Myingyan it joins the National Highway 18. At this point the road forks to the east and eventually rejoins National Highway 1 near the village of Gyobinchan in Myittha Township at . The highway mostly follows the course of the Ayeyarwady River on its eastern bank. The original route was largely absorbed into National Highway 11 (Myanmar)
The NH 2 crosses the 245-meter-high Singkhon Pass, a strategic point where Thailand is at its narrowest. This was historically a point of conflict between Siam and Burma and also played a role during World War II. For a long time, there was no official border crossing, but one opened in 2015. During this period, the entire NH 2 was paved; before that, it was largely a dirt road, except near the border town of Maw Daung. In 2020, the road through Maw Daung was widened to two lanes by two, presumably to impress visitors.