After 15 years of disruptions caused by two devastating typhoons, the Alishan Forest Railway resumed full operations yesterday, with 85 passengers on board the first train from Chiayi to Alishan, a popular tourist attraction in southern Taiwan.
There would be four trains running daily on different sections of the 71.6km Alishan main line, with the full fare from Chiayi to Alishan stations costing NT$600, the Alishan Forest Railway and Cultural Heritage Office said.
Parts of the railway had been closed since 2009 due to the route being damaged in more than 421 places by Typhoon Morakot, the line’s operator said.
Photo: Lin Yi-chang, Taipei Times
Travel between Chiayi and Fenqihu stations resumed in 2014, while the rest of the line, originally set to reopen shortly afterward, was delayed again when Typhoon Dujuan struck in 2015.
While some repairs were made in the following years, the line, which traces its history back to 1912 under Japanese rule, remained operational only between Chiayi and Shizilu stations.
To restore connectivity, the office spent NT$420 million (US$12.95 million) in 2021 to build a 1.1km long tunnel in the typhoon-struck area between Shizilu and Zhaoping stations.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsun, Taipei Times
The three-year project was full of challenges, construction site director Lee Chi-kuan (李致寬) said.
In addition to constant water surges and rockfalls, the workers experienced extreme mental strain because the round-the-clock tunnel excavation work required them to operate in complete darkness, Lee said.
Other incidents such as the COVID-19 outbreak and the Russian-Ukraine war — which led to shortages of workers and explosives, respectively — also affected the construction schedule, Lee said.
Several stations underwent renovations as part of the overhaul of the railway, including Zhuqi, the final stop on the railway’s flat stretch.
Painted in tiffany blue and designated a county historical site, the station uses Alishan cypresses for the wooden frame, while the walls showcase the distinctive “wattle and daub,” a traditional construction method in Taiwan, Lee said.
New safety measures are also being implemented on the line, including the installation of systems to detect objects on the tracks and unstable slopes, the office said.
An automatic incident detection system was installed between tunnels No. 29 and No. 30 because the short distance between them provides drivers with relatively insufficient time to react in the event of an incident, said Lien Hsiang-yi (連祥益) from the office’s Railway Service Division.
Should rocks or trees obstruct the tracks, the system would flash warnings before the train enters the affected area and send messages to train station staff members so they can notify the drivers, Lien said.
To attract visitors, the office has introduced two new tourist charter trains, the Vivid Express and Formosensis, featuring luxurious interior designs and large windows for a refreshing travel experience.
The former, which was launched on May 24, features private box cars and seats that can rotate 360 degrees, the office said.
Formosensis is to start operation on July 28, featuring cypress carriages, metal window frames and arched ceilings, it said.
Despite evolving missions over time — from transporting timber a century ago to boosting tourism today — the railway has continuously shaped the lifestyle of Chiayi residents.
It is hoped that the full railway service and various tour packages would not only create a rich travel experience, but also showcase the abundant scenic views along the route, office director Huang Miao-hsiu (黃妙修) said.
“We hope the railway could introduce the beauty of Alishan to the world,” she said.
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