New MRT line to open by year end

Just ten days after the Hsintien line of Taipei's rapid transit system began regular operations, MRT officials said yesterday they will be ready to open yet another line by the end of next month -- but refused to be pinned down on exact dates.

The Panchiao-Nankang line, the first east-west line in the city's rapid transit network, is set to partially open -- from the Lungshan Temple station in the Wanhua District to the Taipei City Government station in Hsinyi -- before Dec. 31, said Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation (TRTC) spokesperson Henry Chen (陳文福).

When the line opens, trains will leave stations every seven minutes. Trains after 10pm will arrive every 10 minutes, MRT officials said yesterday.

Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) predicted at the opening ceremony for the Hsintien line on Nov. 11 that ridership on the entire MRT network would reach 600,000 per day once the Panchiao-Nankang Line opens. Currently, an average of just over 300,000 people ride the Mucha, Hsintien, Chungho and Tamshui lines every day.

Asked whether the plan to open the Panchiao-Nankang line so soon after the Hsintien Line was putting too much pressure on the Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation, its president, Richard Chen (陳椿亮) said: "The pressure was always there, it was just a question of how much. Now, we're entering the critical period."

The TRTC is currently conducting trial runs of the line, with six trains running between Lungshan Temple station and the Taipei City Government.

The line has to pass further tests, obtain approval from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, and get final approval from the mayor before it can open to the public, said Richard Chen. He declined to put a specific time table on this process.

"It's difficult to tell right now. The rest of the process is out of our hands. But it will open on time," he said.

MRT officials yesterday also unveiled plans to increase the number of trains on existing lines in order to reduce waiting time at each station.

One train was added to the system yesterday, and nine more cars are to be added by the end of this month to shorten the average waiting time on the Hsintien and Chungho lines, from seven to six minutes.

Another batch of trains will be added by the end of January, Chen said.