Rail transport in Taiwan

TRA train crosses the Kaoping Bridge. Kaohsiung , Taiwan

The island of Taiwan has a very extensive railway network of around 1,102 km (TRA-Yearbook 2006). Of this, around 654 km are double-track and around 448 km are single-track. Although the railroad is no longer as important as it used to be, Taiwan's population density makes the railroad an important means of transport, especially along the densely populated western corridor.

The railroad was the grand inspector of the Qing Dynasty , Liu Mingchuan , brought in 1888 to Taiwan. The first steam locomotive was the "Teng Yun", which originally ran on the route between Shanghai and Wusung. In 1888, Liu Ming Chuan gave orders to bring two locomotives to Taiwan. The "Teng Yun" had the road number 01410 and was delivered together with seven other locomotives by the Hohenzollern Corporation for Locomotive Construction (Düsseldorf). The "Teng Yun" ran on the routes in Taiwan until 1924 and is now a monument locomotive in the "New Park" in Taipei. The first, around 29 km long, line in Taiwan was built between Keelung and Taipei in 1887 and went into operation in 1891. The line between Taipei and Hsinchu (around 78 km) followed in 1888 and went into operation in 1893.

During the Japanese rule (1895–1945) the railway on the island, then known as Formosa, was expanded. These railway lines were primarily used to transport raw materials (especially wood and coal, but also gold).

Since there are no railroads on the Penghu , Kinmen , Matsu and other smaller islands belonging to the Republic of China, the main island of Taiwan is the only part of what is now the Republic of China with rail traffic.

Long-distance transport

TRA express train Tze - Chiang

Taiwan High Speed Rail

Since 2007, the Taiwan High Speed Rail , a system of high-speed trains based on Shinkansen technology, has been running along the western corridor between the capital Taipei in the north and the port city of Kaohsiung in the south. The track width is 1435 mm.

Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA)

The TRA operates most of the passenger and freight traffic on Taiwan's main line, which forms a closed ring around the island, and on three branch lines (Pingxi Line, Neiwan Line and Jiji Line). In addition, there are two feeder lines, opened in 2011, which connect the Hsinchu and Tainan stations of the Taiwan High Speed Rail with the respective city centers. The route on the east coast, which was previously only used by diesel multiple units, has now been completely electrified. Taroko Express trains based on the series 885 from JR Kyushu have been running on this route since spring 2007 . In 2013 the Puyuma-Express went into service , which reaches top speeds of 150 km / h and is therefore the fastest train in the TRA's network. On January 15, 2019, TRA signed a contract with Hitachi for the delivery of 50 12-car intercity sets. They are expected to be delivered from 2021. Since 1989 the railway ring, which connects the east and west coast, has had a uniform gauge of 1067 mm.

City express trains

Xiaobitan Railway Station, Taipei Rapid Transit System

With the growing urbanization of Taiwan, various light rail systems have emerged and more are planned.

Taipei Metro: The TRTS (also known as MRT or Metro Taipei) operates an extensive light rail and subway network in the capital Taipei and surrounding areas.

Taoyuan Airport MRT: The line connects Taipei Main Railway Station , Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taoyuan HSRT Station . Construction began in 2006 and the line went into operation in March 2017.

Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit: In 2008, a two-line subway network began operating in Kaohsiung .

Kaohsiung Light Rail: A light rail system under construction in downtown Kaohsiung.

Taichung Metropolitan Area MRI System: The project was approved in 2004. The start of operation of the first line is planned for 2015 at the earliest.

Historic narrow-gauge railways

Around 1933 there were 18 privately owned narrow-gauge railways in Taiwan with a total length of 2296 km, of which 503 km were used for local public passenger and freight transport.

Surname	Length (as of 1933)	Gauge	address	Subscribed capital	Paid-in capital	Remarks
Dai Nihon Soito KK	433 km	610 mm	Kobi-gun, Tainan-shu, Taiwan	51,416,600 yen	45,779,100 yen	Sugar factory, local public transport
Ensuiko Seito KK	317 km	610 mm	Shin-ei-gun, Taiman-shu, Taiway	29,250,000 yen	17,437,500 yen	Sugar factory, local public transport
Irrigation Works Railway			350 Shimo, Toto, Kagi, Taiwan
Keelung Tanko KK			Keelung, Taiwan			Coal mining
Meiji Seito KK	465 km	610 mm	Mato, Sobun-gun, Tainan-shu, Taiwan		39,200,000 yen	Sugar factory, local public transport
Niitaka Seito KK	206 km	610 mm	Churyo-sho, Shoka-gun, Taichu-shu, Taiwan	28,000,000 yen	14,200,000 yen	Sugar factory, local public transport
Sango Koshi			Taichu-shu, Taiwan			Sugar factory
Shinko Seito KK	25 km	600 mm	Sanshicho, Hozan-gun, Takao-shu, Taiwan	2,200,000 yen	1,200,000 yen	Sugar factory, local public transport
Showa Seito KK			Goketsu-sho, Tato-gun, Taihoku-shu, Taiwan
Taichu Keitetsu KK			19 Toyohara-gai, Taichu-shu, Taiwan		980,000 yen	Local public transport
Taihoku Tetsudo KK	10 km	1067 mm	Taihoku, Taiwan	1,000,000 yen	500,000 yen	Railway company
Taito Seito KK	13 km	610 mm	Taito-gai, Taiwan			Sugar factory
Taiwan Electric Power Company Railway		1067 mm	Taihoku, Taiwan			Power plants
Taiwan Mining Company Ltd.			Kinkaseki, Keelung-gun, Taiwan			Mining
Taiwan Hori Saibai KK			Choshu-gun, Takao-shu, Taiwan			Pineapple plantations
Taiwan Seito KK	590 km	610 mm	Heito-gai, Tokao-shu, Taiwan	63,000,000 yen	43,080,000 yen	Sugar factory, local public transport
Teikoku Seito K.-K.	158 km	1067 mm	Taichu, Taiwan	18,000,000 yen	16,200,000 yen	Sugar factory, local public transport
Kaisha or Toro	1247 km	457 or 508 mm				Hand-operated railways with 4760 lorries, rail weight per meter 5 to 6 kg / m

Today's industrial and museum railways

Originally built to transport industrial products, these routes have now become a tourist attraction.

Alishan Forest Railway: A narrow gauge connection from Chiayi to the popular mountain resort of Alishan . The line was originally built in 1912 by the Japanese Colonial Administration for the timber industry. Now the railway mainly transports tourists.

Taipingshan Forest Railway: A former forest railway that was operated as a museum railway for a while after it was closed.

Luodong Forest Railway: A former forest railway that was in operation from 1924 to 1979 and is to be reopened as a museum railway.

Wūlái Táichē: A formerly hand-operated train .

Sugar Railroad in Taiwan: A considerable number of narrow-gauge railways mainly in central and southern Taiwan, originally operated by Meiji Sugar Co. Ltd. during the Japanese rule. were built for the transport of sugar cane , but could also carry out limited travel. Scheduled passenger traffic was discontinued in 1982. In 2003, traffic was resumed on some short routes.

Web links

Commons : Railways of Taiwan - Album with Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

↑ Taiwan orders 50 inter-city trainsets on railwaygazette.com (English), accessed February 10, 2019
↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original from April 28, 2013 on WebCite ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s World Survey of Foreign Railways. United States. Foreign and Domestic Commerce Bureau, 1933. p. 408.

[1] Taiwan orders 50 inter-city trainsets on railwaygazette.com (English), accessed February 10, 2019

[2] Archived copy ( memento of the original from April 28, 2013 on WebCite ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2

[WSoFR-3] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s World Survey of Foreign Railways. United States. Foreign and Domestic Commerce Bureau, 1933. p. 408.