By KHT Staff. Images via KH City Govt.
KAOHSIUNG — Hello Kitty has joined Kaohsiung MRT’s feline mascot, Stationmaster Mikan (蜜柑站長), aboard a themed Red Line train that entered passenger service Oct. 31 and is scheduled to operate through Sept. 30, 2027.
The collaboration with Sanrio features a fully wrapped exterior and matching carriage interiors. According to the city government’s announcement, it is the first train with full interior and exterior themed graphics in the Red Line’s 18 years of operation.
The design extends inside to pink hand straps, while platform screen doors at Zuoying (左營), Formosa Boulevard (美麗島), and Hamasen (哈瑪星) stations also feature the characters, CNA reported. The inaugural trip ran from Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station (橋頭糖廠站) to Formosa Boulevard.
Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) attended the launch and a lighting ceremony at Formosa Boulevard, where four entrances were illuminated in red, blue, yellow, and white for the occasion.
For passengers hoping to catch the train, the operator provides an online themed-train tracker. The service runs on the Red Line; the station decorations extend to the Orange Line.
Limited-edition merchandise is available at the Formosa Boulevard station shop, the Mikan store at Zuoying Station (R16), and the operator’s official Shopee store. Special ticket-gate sounds and graphics are scheduled across the MRT network through Nov. 30.
A stamp-collecting promotion also runs through Sept. 30, 2027. Customers purchasing collaboration merchandise at either station shop receive one randomly selected stamp card for every NT$300 spent in a single transaction, while supplies last. Full conditions and merchandise links appear on Kaohsiung MRT’s campaign page.
