(Photo: Chao Yang-Chen/New York Times)
Taiwan’s west coast, stretching from capital Taipei south toward Kaohsiung, is sometimes referred to as one of the world’s megalopolises, densely populated urban areas made up of several large cities.
The designation is about to get a lot more attention when tomorrow Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. opens its 180 mph commuter trains (comparable to Japan’s Shinkansen) to the public. The trains, in the making for two decades, will give Taiwan’s megalopolis an artery that outruns cars and trounces buses in energy efficiency.
Three trains a day will take passengers a 215-mile distance in 90 minutes, while the rest of the day’s trains will make more stops, lengthening the trip to just over two hours.
A one-way coach ticket from Taipei to Kaohsiung, according to the New York Times, will cost $44.
The trains will initially be driven by French and German operators, then replaced in three years by Taiwanese operators after they’ve been properly trained. The best part about the new trains? They seem to harken back to old-time train operators of the silent film era: the Times story describes one French driver as “sporting a magnificent handlebar mustache.”
Is there a large commuting population between the two areas? $44 seems like such a deal to travel over 200 miles.
It’s amazing that other countries have built a large infrastructure to support this. I can actually see this happening in Southern California but the train system is so slow and inefficient in comparison. I took the train from San Diego to Irvine and it was late. Twice the train had to stop to allow another train to pass by.
I don’t know how big of a commuting population there is, but the high-speed rail is meant to alleviate congestion on highways serving the same cities.
I think the low ticket cost is actually a half-price deal meant to make up for the fact that many people are concerned about the safety of the new system.
Then there’s the hope that one day California will have one too.
I have been stuck on the highway a couple of times while in Taiwan traveling between Taipei and Kaohsiung.
During the diffefent Chinese holidays the roadways are backed up sometimes for 10 hours or more.
This new rail service if reliable will take some of the pressure off the rest of the road/rail/air systems.