The government should not avoid talking about corporatizing Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) and adjusting ticket prices when it comes to reforming the railway agency, transportation experts said at a news conference yesterday.
In an interview published yesterday by the Chinese-language United Daily News, new TRA Director-General Chang Cheng-yuan (張政源) laid out a series of reforms that he is planning to implement following the deadly Puyuma Express derailment on Oct. 21.
Corporatizing the railway agency and raising fares are not his priority, he said in the interview.
Chinese Institute of Transportation chairman Lin Liang-tai (林良泰) said that corporatization is the way that TRA must take to ensure an efficient, flexible and safe operation, adding that it must begin by improving its financial soundness.
“Many people think that corporatizing the TRA is not the only solution to all of its problems, but there would not be a complete reform without considering corporatization. The government does not have a specific timeline. What matters is that the government shows will and determination,” he said.
The government should not determine the dos and don’ts when it conducts a comprehensive evaluation of the TRA, said Shawn Chang (張勝雄), a professor at Tamkang University’s transportation management department, adding that the agency would never experience a rebirth if there is no fundamental, structural change.
The TRA is one of the most important means of transportation for ordinary people, he said.
If it continues to offer the service without considering costs and revenue, it would never know how to allocate its resources, he said.
The government should subsidize the TRA if it does not allow the agency to raise ticket prices and should not keep asking it to bear financial losses, which he said has topped NT$100 billion (US$3.23 billion).
The most challenging part of corporatizing the TRA would be opposition from its employees, Chang said, adding that the government should seek to enhance communication with workers to avoid confusion.
Former Taipei Department of Transportation commissioner Chung Hui-yu (鍾慧諭) said the TRA has been talking about corporatization for 40 years, during which Chunghwa Post, Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp, Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport have been corporatized.
Commenting on the grade separation projects that have been proposed by many local governments, Chung said that they are not key to the development of lands along the railway lines.
TRA railway lines pass through the largest city in each municipality or county and these railway stations should function as a gateway, she said.
The TRA should work with local governments to develop the properties surrounding these railway stations, which should benefit both parties, she said.
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