The operator of the Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit (KMRT) system said at the weekend that the system would handle 11 percent more passengers per day this year than it did last year, easing the financial woes that have plagued the system since it opened in 2008.
As a result of the merger of Kaohsiung city and county on Dec. 25 and the resulting addition of bus lines connecting various areas around what was Kaohsiung County to KMRT stations, the system is expected to handle an average of 141,000 passengers per day this year, a Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp (KRTC) official said.
That would be a big improvement over 2008 and 2009, when the network averaged 118,000 and 127,000 passengers per day respectively, KRTC Department of Public Affairs director Chang Hsiu-chi (張修齊) said.
However, the system still posted an operating loss of NT$2.5 billion (US$86 million) last year, cushioned by a NT$1 billion grant from a Kaohsiung City Government MRT fund.
KRTC would break even if average volume reached 380,000 passengers a day, Chang said. He added that the target was attainable within eight years if passenger numbers grew between 7 percent and 10 percent annually.
To boost passenger numbers, the KMRT operator is also planning to build a light rail rapid transit system around the city, thereby extending the reach of the existing Red Line and Orange Line — the two lines that make up the Kaohsiung MRT system.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
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