An organization on Friday petitioned authorities to preserve the site of the now disused Kaohsiung Harbor Train Station from two proposed transport projects.
Built in 1900 during the Japanese colonial era, the station, originally named Takao Post, was the first railway station in Kaohsiung and a hub for railway and ocean cargo.
Decommissioned in 2008, the station is now part of the Takao Railway Museum, which is the center of a railway culture park where old rails and facilities still stand in their original places.
With its railway structure intact and rich in historic value, the park qualifies for a world heritage site nomination and should be maintained to the highest standard, but the park is in danger of disintegration with two pending transport projects, Go Hamasen Alliance said.
The Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit Bureau is planning to make use of the defunct railroad in the park for a light-rail system under construction that is to go through the park and areas near the Port of Kaohsiung, the alliance said.
Separately, Kaohsiung Transportation Bureau plans to build a large bus transit terminal in the park’s vicinity to lessen traffic congestion around Sizihwan (西子灣) and National Sun Yat-sen University, which has been caused by the massive influx of Chinese tourists, the alliance said.
The alliance and residents of the Penglai (蓬萊) community have called for the relocation of the proposed transit terminal to ensure that the integrity of the park and its railway system, saying that Kaohsiung City Government should refrain from building anything that might stay idle after completion.
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