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Reimbursements top rail issues

Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp's (THSRC, 高鐵) shuttle transist system and reimbursement mechanism for delays were the top concerns in a Consumers' Foundation (消基會) survey published yesterday.

Almost a year after its launch on Jan. 5 last year, the poll found that 62 percent of 2,660 respondents said it was unreasonable for THSRC only to reimburse the full fare when delays were for more than an hour, or to only refund half the fare for delays between 30 minutes and an hour.

An official at THSRC disagreed.

"The railway's reimbursement system for delays is quite reasonable compared to that of overseas railway service providers. Japan, for example, only reimburses train delays of more than two hours. In France, passengers are only reimbursed half the fare for delays of more than an hour," vice president of THSRC's public affairs division Ted Chia (賈先德) said. "Nonetheless, THSRC will still take the foundation's suggestions into consideration."

Despite those complaints, a majority expressed satisfaction with the company's overall service.

The second biggest issue that THSRC needs to resolve, 55 percent of the respondents said, was its transfer services.

Chia said that local bus services do not fall under the company's jurisdiction.

"THSRC's main challenge is that the company does not have the right to operate local bus services. THSRC is currently, at its own cost, providing free shuttle buses at Taichung (台中) station and at Zuoying (左營) station in Kaohsiung because of the crowds of passengers there that require them," Chia said.

Chia urged the government to allow private companies to operate transportation services, such as nine-seater buses, between the railway stations and the city center.

Another 45 percent found it unreasonable that passengers were required to cancel their tickets at least half-an-hour before the scheduled departure time.

Chia said the rule aimed to protect other passengers' rights to secure tickets and seats. However, he said the company would take all its customers concerns into consideration.

THSRC operated a total of 24,400 trains last year, carrying approximately 15.55 million passengers. Its revenue, as of last November, had reached NT$12 billion (US$370 million) and the firm was expecting to break even this year, Chia said.

"In December, THSRC's total number of passengers exceeded 2 million, up 20.48 percent when compared with November's 1.66 million, and the firm expects to see a higher growth rate in the next two months as a result of the Lunar New Year holiday," Chia said.

For the Lunar New Year holiday, Chia said THSRC would start selling tickets online from midnight last night and was planning to operate 1,500 trains with nearly 1.48 million seats available between Feb. 1 and Feb. 12.

THSRC's other plans for this year include the launch of a telephone voicemail system during the first half to enhance the speed of its service. The company is also in talks with President Chain Store Corp (統一超商) and other major convenience stores, exploring the possibility of ticket sales at their stores, Chia said.
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