The Puyuma Express train will be launched on Feb. 6, the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) said yesterday.
TRA transportation department chief Du Wei (杜微) said testing of the first set of the new tilting train was nearly complete.
He said the train would be used to transport passengers heading to the east coast for the Lunar New Year holiday, adding that the second set was still under testing.
Photo: Lin Hsin-han, Taipei Times
Each train consists of eight carriages, he said.
The first service is scheduled to depart from Shulin (樹林) Train Station at 9:40am on Feb. 6. The train will enable the TRA to add 56 trains during the nine-day holiday and provide an additional 2,000 seats daily.
Du said cabins No. 4 and No. 5 offer eight sets of table seats, with each accommodating four passengers. Two of the four passengers at the table seats would have to sit facing opposite the direction in which the train is heading.
Du said those wishing to buy tickets for the table seats must purchase four tickets at a time, adding that the TRA only accepts orders online or at station ticket counters.
“The seating arrangement in the cabins makes it easier for friends or family members to talk each other or play poker,” Du said. “Some people might feel uncomfortable if they sit next to or face a stranger the whole journey.”
However, Du said the TRA would accept orders from non-group travelers if there were still seats left in these two cabins within three days before departure.
Those heading to the east coast during the holiday can start booking tickets on Tuesday next week.
To ease congestion at peak hours, the TRA also announced it will offer four night express services on Feb. 7, Feb. 8, Feb. 15 and Feb. 16.
On Feb. 7 and Feb. 8, the night train will depart from Shulin at 11:28pm and arrive at Hualien at 2:35am.
The trains running on Feb. 15 and Feb. 16 will depart from Hualien at 11pm and arrive in Shulin at 1:50am.
Passengers taking the night trains will get a 30 percent discount, the TRA said.
The government should improve children’s outdoor spaces and accelerate carbon reduction programs, as the risk of heat-related injury due to high summer temperatures rises each year, Greenpeace told a news conference yesterday. Greenpeace examined summer temperatures in Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu City, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung to determine the effects of high temperatures and climate change on children’s outdoor activities, citing data garnered by China Medical University, which defines a wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) of 29°C or higher as posing the risk of heat-related injury. According to the Central Weather Administration, WBGT, commonly referred to as the heat index, estimates
Taipei and other northern cities are to host air-raid drills from 1:30pm to 2pm tomorrow as part of urban resilience drills held alongside the Han Kuang exercises, Taiwan’s largest annual military exercises. Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung, Taoyuan, Yilan County, Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County are to hold the annual Wanan air defense exercise tomorrow, following similar drills held in central and southern Taiwan yesterday and today respectively. The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and Maokong Gondola are to run as usual, although stations and passenger parking lots would have an “entry only, no exit” policy once air raid sirens sound, Taipei
Taipei placed 14th in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Best Student Cities 2026 list, its highest ever, according to results released yesterday. With an overall score of 89.1, the city climbed 12 places from the previous year, surpassing its previous best ranking of 17th in 2019. Taipei is “one of Asia’s leading higher-education hubs,” with strong employer activity scores and students “enjoying their experience of the city and often keen to stay after graduation,” a QS staff writer said. In addition to Taipei, Hsinchu (71st), Tainan (92nd), Taichung (113th) and Taoyuan (130th) also made QS’ list of the top 150 student cities. Hsinchu showed the
Environmental groups yesterday filed an appeal with the Executive Yuan, seeking to revoke the environmental impact assessment (EIA) conditionally approved in February for the Hsieh-ho Power Plant’s planned fourth liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving station off the coast of Keelung. The appeal was filed jointly by the Protect Waimushan Seashore Action Group, the Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association and the Keelung City Taiwan Head Cultural Association, which together held a news conference outside the Executive Yuan in Taipei. Explaining the reasons for the appeal, Wang Hsing-chih (王醒之) of the Protect Waimushan Seashore Action Group said that the EIA failed to address
RSS