The Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) yesterday said that starting on Sunday for a period of two weeks, passengers using the new Shalun Line (沙崙線) in Tainan will be able to board trains free of charge.
The 6.52km branch line connects the Tainan TRA station on the Western Line (西部幹線) to the Tainan High Speed Rail (HSR) Station. It begins at Jhongjhou Station, stops at Chang Jung Christian University Station — located on campus — and terminates at Shalun Station.
From Shalun Station, passengers can transfer to the Tainan HSR Station by walking through a 34m underground passage.
PHOTO: TSENG HUNG-JU, TAIPEI TIMES
An inauguration ceremony will be held on Sunday to celebrate the new line’s launch, the TRA said.
The free train service will start immediately after the ceremony.
Pilot services will be launched from Nanke Station on the Western Line, and from Shalun Station at 3:18pm, it said.
To facilitate transfers between the Western main line and the Shalun branch line, the TRA has arranged for 70 commuter trains to operate daily either between Nanke or Tainan TRA stations and Shalun Station. The estimated travel time is about 22 minutes, which contrasts with the 50 minutes it takes to make the same journey by bus.
All stations along the branch line are equipped with multiple-card-reading machines, the TRA said.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
Democratic Progressive Party caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu, front, grabs the pennant in a dragon boat race hosted by Qu Yuan Temple in the Shuanghsi River in Taipei’s Beitou District yesterday.
RSS