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High-speed rail on track

Workers from the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp, are busy finishing work at a site in Yenchao township, Kaohsiung County, as the company prepares for the test drive scheduled in September. The company's trains will be delivered to Taiwan on May 25. PHOTO: CHIEN JUNG-FENG, TAIPEI TIMES

In anticipation of the delivery of the first bullet trains from their Japan-ese manufacturer at the end of the month, high-speed railway authorities yesterday reiterated that construction was on schedule and that the service would be inaugurated by October of next year, as promised.

"Since we signed a contract with the government in July 1998, we've had to overcome many difficulties, but I trust that we will continue doing just that," said Nita Ing (殷琪), chairwoman of the Taiwan High Speed Railway Corp (THSRC).

According to THSRC officials, the first batch of bullet trains, 700T models manufactured by Japanese Kawasaki Heavy Industries, will be shipped from the factory in Kobe on May 18. The train cars are scheduled to arrive at Kaohsiung harbor on May 25, and to be transported to THSRC's main workshop in Kaohsiung to be assembled on May 29.

Testing of the 12 cars will begin in September on tracks between the Tainan and Kaohsiung stations, a distance of roughly 60km.

However, the THSRC's fundraising woes have often raised questions as to whether the bullet-train service would be delayed. Ing said yesterday that in terms of funding, THSRC's five major shareholders still needed to put up another NT$14.5 billion before completion of the project. However, of the NT$7.5 needed before July, only NT$2.1 billion has been raised.

THSRC spokesman Edward Lin (林天送) said that the company had incurred additional costs unaccounted for in the original contract. He said the total cost of construction amounted to NT$464.8 billion for THSRC's account. Of that amount, NT$323.3 billion will be covered through bank loans and another NT$133.2 billion as free capital from stock sales. The remaining NT$9.3 billion, however, are additional costs that must be covered through selling shares.

Ing said that the company planned to hold a roadshow abroad at the beginning of next year in a bid to attract overseas investors.

In addition the company must also deal with an International Chamber of Commerce ruling last month which ordered it to pay US$73 million in compensation to a European business group.

However, the THSRC's plans go beyond the construction of trains and stations -- developing the areas around the stations is another component of a 50-year contract signed with the government.

"We are planning a total of five new towns, working with an area of about 1,500 hectares," said Charles Hseuh (薛昭信), advisor to the THSRC's Station Area Development Division.

The land surrounding key stations, including Tainan, Hsinchu and Taoyuan, are to be transformed into new "town centers." The new towns will be geared towards increasing development in the area and will feature luxury hotels, shopping malls, Club Taiwan and even science parks.

The Hsinchu station will be the first to begin development of town centers, starting the bidding process for land use at the end of this year.

"It will take about 10 to 15 years for the development of these towns, and another 20 to 30 years for them to reach maturity," Hseuh said.

The bullet-train system runs north-south for 345km between Taipei and Kaohsiung. Running at a speed of up to 300kph, the trains will reduce travel time between the two cities to just 80 minutes.
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