Bureau of High Speed Rail Director-General Pang Jia-hua (龐家驊) said yesterday that the bureau had yet to approve the Taiwan High Speed Rail Co's (THSRC) proposal to let passengers board any train without reserving seats.
Pang said the bureau was also unlikely to allow THSRC to offer a NT$100 discount on commuter travel, as it would take commuter business away from the Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) and did not fit the company's role as a long-distance carrier.
"The high speed rail should be used to carry long-distance travelers, whereas the TRA is mainly in charge of commuter transport and short-distance travelers," Pang said. "There will most assuredly be confusion if the THSRC starts servicing short-distance travelers."
Pang made the comments after the Chinese-language Apple Daily reported yesterday that the THSRC was mulling offering a discount scheme for short-distance travelers.
The report said the discount would reduce the cost of a high speed rail ticket from Hsinchu to Banciao (板橋) to NT$160, making it cheaper to take the high speed rail than a TRA Tzuchiang Express, which charges NT$180 for the same trip.
Pang said that the bureau would create a taskforce to review the proposal, adding that the company still needs to work out some complementary measures before the proposal could become reality.
Pang said the high speed rail stations must be equipped with facilities and signs guiding passengers to the designated cars.
Pang added that the company must also solve problems such as refunds for train delays, as the tickets show neither the boarding time nor the train number.
Bureau Deputy Director-General Hu Hsiang-ling (胡湘麟) raised questions about the special discount the THSRC intends to offer.
"Say a person is heading to Taichung. He could then take advantage of the offer and buy two tickets -- one from Taipei to Hsinchu and the other from Hsinchu to Taichung. That way, he could save more than he would if he bought a Taipei to Taichung ticket," Hu said.
As the company intends to increase the number of two-way runs to 113 next month, Hu said the bureau would also examine its ability to complete maintenance with a shortened timeframe.
THSRC spokesman Ted Chia (賈先德) said the special price offer could be based on the principle of increasing discounts, meaning the farther one travels, the greater the discount.
Chia said another option would be for the company to offer a 5 percent to 7 percent discount on all purchases.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe
ON PAROLE: The 73-year-old suspect has a criminal record of rape committed when he was serving in the military, as well as robbery and theft, police said The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday approved the detention of a 73-year-old man for allegedly murdering three women. The suspect, surnamed Chang (張), was arrested on Wednesday evening in connection with the death of a 71-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙). The Kaohsiung City Police Department yesterday also unveiled the identities of two other possible victims in the serial killing case, a 75-year-old woman surnamed Huang (黃), the suspect’s sister-in-law, and a 75-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), who is not related to the suspect. The case came to light when Chao disappeared after taking the suspect back to his residence on Sunday. Police, upon reviewing CCTV
RSS