Taiwan Today

Taiwan’s urban transit systems seek international exchanges and cooperation.

Urban development in Taiwan places an intense pressure on public transport, and mass rapid transit (MRT) systems across the country are the key to enhancing traffic flow while boosting local economies. Taipei, New Taipei and Taoyuan Cities in the north, as well as Taichung City in central Taiwan and Kaohsiung City in the south, all boast world-class metro systems. The five MRT companies came together as Metro Taiwan last July to coordinate progress on the crucial goals of sustainable, efficient and intelligent rail transportation, taking immediate steps forward with a personnel and technical exchange meeting in the capital.

  Metro Taiwan is also working to expand partnerships overseas with rail systems like Singapore’s SMRT, according to Taipei Rapid Transit Corp. (TRTC) Chair Chao Shiao-lien (趙紹廉), who oversees the country’s oldest and largest MRT system. As a forerunner in urban metros, SMRT was a great help during the establishment of Taipei’s system, providing training to personnel before it went into operation in 1996. Now Metro Taiwan is sharing its own expertise: TRTC signed a friendship agreement last October with SMRT Trains and a memorandum of understanding on cooperation with SBS Transit, which is also based in Singapore.

  Newer transportation companies, like Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp. (KRTC) in the southern port city, also maintain close contact with international partners who helped them early in their development. During its initial phases of operation in the 2000s, KRTC sought advice from Hong Kong’s Mass Transit Railway, and similar links also connect European operators and Kaohsiung’s MRT, which used equipment from France, Germany and Spain, according to KRTC Chair Yang Yueh-kun (楊岳崑).

International Transfers
Like Hong Kong’s transit system and Singapore’s SMRT, TRTC is a member of the Community of Metros (COMET). The group, facilitated by the Transport Strategy Centre at Imperial College London, provides benchmarks for urban railway performance by bringing together 45 major metro systems in 41 cities worldwide. TRTC has also joined global bodies such as Washington, D.C.-headquartered American Public Transportation Association and Brussels-based International Association of Public Transport, two of the world’s largest organizations promoting regular exchanges and technical collaboration in the field.

TRTC regularly sends representatives to meetings of international bodies, and this past year saw the company host personnel from Singapore’s Land Transport Authority and its transit subsidiaries for in-depth discussions on issues including digital innovation, property revitalization and sustainable development. “Through such interaction, we show that we’re ready not only to learn by observation, but also to share our expertise and experience with others,” Chao said. “In doing so, we can enhance Taipei’s profile and status on the global stage.”

  Taipei’s metro system is reliable and highly effective, which is typically measured in terms of its routes’ mean smooth operation distances. According to Chao, TRTC trains last year recorded an average of just over 19 million kilometers traveled between train delays of more than five minutes, rising from 0.53 million in 2002. During last November’s COMET meeting in Dubai, this performance impressed representatives from Kuala Lumpur’s Rapid Rail Sdn Bhd and inspired the Malaysian company to plan an observational trip to Taipei this year, while Dubai Metro also expressed interest in forming a cooperative relationship with TRTC and conducting bilateral exchanges. “Our five lines are able to serve more than two million riders a day because we monitor the whole system carefully,” Chao said. “We’re proud of how smoothly our system functions, and it’s a great advantage in our city-to-city diplomacy outreach.”

Convenient Travel
As part of post-pandemic rejuvenation of the tourism sector and campaign to attract international visitors, TRTC is eager to forge partnerships beyond the exchange of operational information. “We have plans to reach out to cities with direct flights to Taiwan, such as Boston and New York in the U.S. and London, Paris, Prague and Vienna in Europe,” Chao said. “Our first priority, though, is bilateral tourism with nearby Asian countries like Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Thailand.”

Japan, as one of the biggest sources of international travelers to Taiwan, is at the top of the list for collaboration. Arrivals from the neighboring country reached a historic high of more than 2.16 million in 2019, a number that has not yet been approached since the lifting of Taiwan’s COVID-19 quarantine regulations, according to the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’  Tourism Administration. The ministry’s statistics also shed light on the number of travelers that Taiwan sends Japan: the country welcomed over 4.9 million visits from its southern neighbor in 2019, with a post-pandemic rebound to more than 3.8 million during the first 11 months of 2023.

  Connections on a more local level continued last August with a cooperation agreement between TRTC and its Maokong Gondola line with Shizuoka Railway Co. and its affiliated Nihondaira Ropeway in such areas as tourism promotion, commercial ties and cultural exchanges. TRTC has made similar arrangements with Tobu Railway Co., Kintetsu Railway Co. and Gozaisho Ropeway. “We’re ­looking at all corners of Japan for partners, especially the capital, to attract tourists through multilateral cooperation,” Chao said, referring to initiatives to bring together TRTC, Taoyuan Metro Corp., Tokyo Metro Co. and Keisei Electric Railway Co.

Expanding Ties
Not content to let Taipei and other northern cities dominate Metro Taiwan’s ­international outreach, the biggest municipality in southern Taiwan is also taking steps to connect with Japan. KRTC is boosting exchanges and cooperation with Japanese rail companies in the Tokyo region and elsewhere, beginning with Tokyo’s metro in 2014 and followed by Keio Corp., Enoshima Electric Railway Co. and Keifuku Electric Railroad Co. in more recent years. Mutual marketing links have extended into the post-pandemic era, in which they have been supplemented by deals with Keihan Electric Railway Co. and Odakyu Electric Railway Co., Enoshima’s parent company.

With support from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’ Institute of Transportation and the city government’s transportation bureau, KRTC and Odakyu signed a business cooperation agreement on mobility as a service (MaaS), an emerging model offering a joint digital channel that grants access to all transport means available in a city including public bikes, buses, ferries, light rail and metro systems. The initiative launched a one-day pass program last September for visitors from Kaohsiung who hold the city’s local MeNGo MaaS card to travel in Japan’s Kanagawa prefecture. Significantly, this marks the first case in Asia of MaaS working transnationally.

  To attract Japanese tourists to Kao­hsiung, Tokyo-headquartered Nippon Travel Agency began selling the Kaohsiung Fun Pass last June. The card was released in 2015 and incorporates a 48-hour MaaS pass along with admission to 21 tourist spots such as Kaohsiung Music Center, i-Ride Experience Center, Suzuka Circuit Park and Shoushan Zoo. Local tours have received a further boost from the recently completed light rail line that encircles the city’s core. It supplements two intersecting lines that started operation in 2008, and another metro route is currently under construction. “Upgrades to our service will better meet the needs of tourists and commuters alike,” KRTC’s Yang said. “An expanding, maturing public transit system will aid domestic and international tourism, which adds momentum to Kaohsiung’s cosmopolitan development.”

Write to Pat Gao at cjkao@mofa.gov.tw