The Jiji Line (集集線), one of the nation’s heritage railway routes, will be closed in March because seven of its tunnels between Zhuoshui (濁水) Station and Checheng (車埕) are in need of immediate repairs, the Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) said last week.
Construction of the line began in 1919 and was completed in 1921. It was purchased by the Japanese colonial government in 1927. The line was severely damaged in the 921 Earthquake in 1999 and did not resume operations until 2002.
The TRA said the seven tunnels to be repaired were built between 1925 and 1960 and their interior walls cracked after the 921 quake.
TRA maintenance work to shore up the tunnels reduced the space inside to the point that only small diesel-powered trains can pass through.
The renovation work will begin on March 1 and end on Jan. 14, next year. During that period, trains will only operate between Ershui (二水) and Longquan (龍泉) stations.
The TRA has arranged with two bus operators to transport passengers from Longquan to Chencheng and will pay them about NT$8.96 million (US$280,000) to cover the ticket costs.
The TRA will also start taking reservations today for special cruise train services to the East Coast this weekend, which are part of celebration of the 30th anniversary of its North Link. The trip will include a brief steam train ride from Hualien to Chungde (崇德), with a CK-124 model locomotive pulling the train.
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
Instead of focusing solely on the threat of a full-scale military invasion, the US and its allies must prepare for a potential Chinese “quarantine” of Taiwan enforced through customs inspections, Stanford University Hoover fellow Eyck Freymann said in a Foreign Affairs article published on Wednesday. China could use various “gray zone” tactics in “reconfiguring the regional and ultimately the global economic order without a war,” said Freymann, who is also a nonresident research fellow at the US Naval War College. China might seize control of Taiwan’s links to the outside world by requiring all flights and ships entering or leaving Taiwan
The first of 10 new high-capacity trains purchased from South Korea’s Hyundai Rotem arrived at the Port of Taipei yesterday to meet the demands of an expanding metro network, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. The train completed a three-day, 1,200km voyage from the Port of Masan in South Korea, the company said. Costing NT$590 million (US$18.79 million) each, the new six-carriage trains feature a redesigned interior based on "human-centric" transportation concepts, TRTC said. The design utilizes continuous longitudinal seating to widen the aisles and optimize passenger flow, while also upgrading passenger information displays and driving control systems for a more comfortable
Taiwan's first indigenous defense submarine, the SS-711 Hai Kun (海鯤, or Narwhal), departed for its 13th sea trial at 7am today, marking its seventh submerged test, with delivery to the navy scheduled for July. The outing also marked its first sea deployment since President William Lai (賴清德) boarded the submarine for an inspection on March 19, drawing a crowd of military enthusiasts who gathered to show support. The submarine this morning departed port accompanied by CSBC Corp’s Endeavor Manta (奮進魔鬼魚號) uncrewed surface vessel and a navy M109 assault boat. Amid public interest in key milestones such as torpedo-launching operations and overnight submerged trials,
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