The Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced yesterday it had completed planning for a shuttle bus network connecting high speed rail stations and nearby townships. The service is scheduled to begin operations in April.
Passengers will be charged between NT$27 and NT$76 for a one-way trip, depending on distance, the ministry said.
At present, the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC, 台灣高鐵) offers five shuttle bus routes at its Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Taichung and Tainan stations.
Chen Yen-po (陳彥伯), deputy director-general of the Department of Railways and highways, said the contract for the free shuttle bus service would expire next month.
Aside from the five shuttle bus routes, Chen said the Directorate General of Highways had expanded the existing network by adding seven routes.
“Because the nation will soon celebrate the New Year and Lunar New Year holidays, the ministry has asked the THSRC to continue offering the free shuttle bus service until the end of March to help facilitate transportation for home-bound travelers,” he said.
Chen said that each one-way bus trip would take between 30 and 40 minutes, with no more than 10 bus stops along the route.
The bus schedules will also be designed to ensure the smooth transfer of high speed rail passengers.
The bus operators will be required to offer between 70 and 120 round-trip services daily, he said.
The increase in ticket prices for these new services will not exceed 25 percent of current ticket prices, he said.
The ministry also intends to perform a comprehensive evaluation six months after the beginning of operations, he said.
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