Taiwan and Japan plan to launch a joint rail tourism campaign next month as part of expanding links between the two countries since a massive earthquake struck Japan in March last year.
In the campaign, dubbed “sister trains,” Taiwan’s CK124 steam engine and a similar Japanese train called the Hokkaido SL Fuyu-no-Shitsugen will be used to promote railway travel in both countries, authorities said.
The partnership idea came about during a visit to Taiwan by Japanese officials in April last year to promote tourism as part of Japan’s disaster recovery efforts.
Photo: CNA, courtesy of the Taiwan Railways Administration
After months of discussions and with the help of non-profit organizations, a promotional campaign was devised featuring a plan called “Train Travel: Winter in Hokkaido and summer in Taiwan.”
It is to be formalized on March 12 in a letter of intent signed by the Japan Hokkaido Railway Co (JR Hokkaido) and the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA).
“It is the first time that Taiwan has entered into such a partnership with a foreign rail company,” said Wang Chuan-hsin (王川信), the TRA division chief in charge of the project.
JR Hokkaido said the promotional campaign is expected to help revive the economy in northeast Japan, an area that was hit hard by the powerful earthquake and ensuing tsunami on March 11 last year.
The partnership is also a means to express Japan’s gratitude for Taiwan’s tremendous humanitarian aid in the wake of the disaster, JR Hokkaido said.
For Taiwan, the project also offers an opportunity to enhance cultural preservation, according to the Society of Railway and National Planning, which has been involved in the partnership.
“We hope Taiwan can take this opportunity to learn from Japan’s ways of preserving invaluable cultural heritage like these locomotives,” said Jen Hen-yi, a spokesman for the society.
Although the full details of the promotional campaign have not been finalized, the TRA said, it plans to invite its Japanese counterpart to take part in Taiwan’s Railway Festival in June.
The CK124, built in 1936, is one of Taiwan’s most popular steam locomotives and is widely used by the TRA for promotional purposes.
In Japan, the C11-171 engine that pulls the SL Fuyu-no--Shitsugen Train was manufactured in 1940 and operated in various parts of Hokkaido.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS