As the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) continues to struggle with years of accumulated losses, the Control Yuan has proposed making up part of the difference by canceling discounts for foreigners who are disabled, elderly or aged under 12.
Chien Lin Hui-chun (錢林慧君), a member of the government’s highest supervisory body, questioned the wisdom of extending the discounts enjoyed by Taiwanese to foreigners on the 345km railway, the beneficiary of government investments and subsidies.
She said that concession tickets sold to foreigners since 2009 have cost the THSRC NT$199 million (US$6.59 million).
Photo courtesy of the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp
The operator of the railway, which opened in 2007, had accumulated NT$53.5 billion in losses as of January, despite having started to turn a profit in 2011.
The THSRC offers the same discounts to foreigners as it does to Taiwanese: half-price tickets for the mentally or physically disabled, senior citizens and children under 12.
Chien Lin’s report called for the policy to be reconsidered, saying it takes advantage of subsidies from Taiwanese taxpayers, though the report did not make any suggestions for policies on foreign nationals who legally reside, work and pay taxes in Taiwan.
The Control Yuan member also cited canceling the discounts out of the “spirit of equality and reciprocity,” saying that mass transit systems in other countries, such as Japan, Hong Kong and the UK, “do not have preferential treatment for our nationals.”
According to her report, the THSRC has previously defended its policy as a way to boost the nation’s reputation for friendliness and attract more foreign visitors.
Chien Lin’s report said in a separate section that legally mandated concession tickets on regular trains — for Taiwanese and foreigners alike — have caused the Taiwan Railways Administration losses of about NT$4.09 billion.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications has not subsidized the rail authority’s burden as it is required to, Chien Lin said.
Costa Rica sent a group of intelligence officials to Taiwan for a short-term training program, the first time the Central American country has done so since the countries ended official diplomatic relations in 2007, a Costa Rican media outlet reported last week. Five officials from the Costa Rican Directorate of Intelligence and Security last month spent 23 days in Taipei undergoing a series of training sessions focused on national security, La Nacion reported on Friday, quoting unnamed sources. The Costa Rican government has not confirmed the report. The Chinese embassy in Costa Rica protested the news, saying in a statement issued the same
Taiwan’s Liu Ming-i, right, who also goes by the name Ray Liu, poses with a Chinese Taipei flag after winning the gold medal in the men’s physique 170cm competition at the International Fitness and Bodybuilding Federation Asian Championship in Ajman, United Arab Emirates, yesterday.
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
A year-long renovation of Taipei’s Bangka Park (艋舺公園) began yesterday, as city workers fenced off the site and cleared out belongings left by homeless residents who had been living there. Despite protests from displaced residents, a city official defended the government’s relocation efforts, saying transitional housing has been offered. The renovation of the park in Taipei’s Wanhua District (萬華), near Longshan Temple (龍山寺), began at 9am yesterday, as about 20 homeless people packed their belongings and left after being asked to move by city personnel. Among them was a 90-year-old woman surnamed Wang (王), who last week said that she had no plans
RSS