The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) on Thursday held a groundbreaking ceremony for a planned dual-track electrified rail line at Taitung Station.
The first phase of the project would connect Taitung City with Taitung County’s Jhihben Township (知本), the Railway Bureau said in a statement.
The connection is part of a larger project to modernize the rail link between Hualien City and Taitung, it said, adding that the dual-track electrified railway would allow trains to run more efficiently and handle peak-time passenger volumes more easily.
Photo: Huang Ming-tang, Taipei Times
After all single-track sections on the route from Kaohsiung to Hualien are updated, trains would be able to cover the distance in three hours, it said.
The project is expected to cost NT$45.6 billion (US$1.49 billion) and be finished in October 2027, when construction crews from the north and south are scheduled to meet 112.6km south of Hualien Station, the bureau said.
Faster travel on the route would boost tourism and make commuting easier for Taitung residents, it added.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Liu Chao-hao (劉櫂豪) told the event that up to eight train services per hour would be offered on the route.
Peak-time tickets would no longer sell out far in advance, Liu said, adding that the issue has for a long time been an annoyance to visitors and residents.
The ministry has also purchased 50 Hitachi EMU3000 inter-city trains and hired additional drivers to address the issue, Liu added.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Wang Kwo-tsai (王國材) said that after the dual-track project and planned high-speed rail links are finished, it would be possible to travel around Taiwan proper in six hours.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or