The Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) plans to create its own international hotel brand as part of its corporatization.
The Legislative Yuan in May passed the third reading of the State-run Taiwan Railways Corporation Act (國營台灣鐵路股份有限公司設置條例) — to transform the TRA from a regular government agency into a state-owned corporation — and amendments to the Railway Act (鐵路法), which would allow the TRA to utilize its assets more freely.
Business not related to the TRA’s rail operations include real-estate investment, property leasing, food sales and merchandising, but income sources and asset development can be diversified after the amendments take effect.
Photo: CNA
The TRA has been utilizing its assets and promoting tourism by rail, aiming to increase its income earned from affiliated businesses from NT$5 billion (US$166.83 million) last year to NT$10 billion by 2030, TRA Planning Department head Chiang Ming-i (江明宜) said on Friday.
During the discussion phase of corporatization, the TRA proposed opening hotels, an idea modeled after the East Japan Railway Co’s operation of the Hotel Metropolitan Premier Taipei, he said.
Potential land for hotels includes the TRA Employees’ Training Center in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投) and land it owns in Yilan’s Jiaosi Township (礁溪), he said, adding that the agency could cooperate with hot spring hotel groups or create its own brand.
Before taking on long-term hotel plans, the TRA should develop land around Kaohsiung Main Station, which was given to the railway operator after urban land readjustment, as well as its old dormitories on Taipei’s Andong Street and Shida Road, he said.
To promote tourism, the TRA plans to transform the Pingsi (平溪), Neiwan (內灣) and Jiji (集集) branch lines into tourist lines, targeting tour groups and single-ticket tourists, he said.
It also plans to launch excursion trains with new themes and continue to collaborate with travel agencies to promote tourism by railway, he said, adding that the agency hopes that income from excursion trains could reach NT$140 million this year, increasing to NT$214 million in 2025 and NT$430 million in 2030.
Sales of boxed meals in the TRA system peaked in 2019 at 11 million, generating revenue of NT$850 million, but dropped to 5.13 million boxes last year, with revenue declining to NT$360 million, and 2.74 million meals in the first half of this year, with NT$195 million in revenue, TRA Affiliated Business Operation Center deputy general manager Wang Wen-chien (王文謙) said.
The agency could develop special boxed meals and other merchandise based on popular railway tourism trends to attract a wider variety of tourists and commuters, Chiang said.
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