Browsing: Kaohsiung train station

The civic Facebook page 高雄好過日 (@takaogooday) reported that NT$150 million has been secured for the restoration of the Imperial Crown-style old station building (帝冠車站), with the Kaohsiung City Bureau of Cultural Affairs (高雄市政府文化局) expected to handle the project on behalf of Taiwan Railway Corp. The project is expected to be tendered as early as July, with restoration taking about 18 months to two years and possible completion in 2028, according to the post. The restoration funding and timeline were also reported by Yahoo News, citing local reporting.

Domestic airfare prices have remained unchanged for 26 years, with current one-way tickets on the Kaohsiung–Hualien route priced at NT$2,329. Despite this, demand has remained weak, with Chen noting that rail travel offers a competitive alternative.

Company representatives said the priority is bringing people into the space and building familiarity with the station area ahead of the larger retail and office complex expected to open in 2028.

The initiative is part of a broader effort to turn the area around Kaohsiung Station into more than just a transportation hub, encouraging young people to gather, perform, and interact in public space.

The selected route largely follows the former surface rail corridor that was placed underground during Kaohsiung’s decade-long railway undergrounding program.

In 2002, during the relocation of the 1941 Imperial Crown-style building to accommodate the new underground station, the Red Carp sculpture was moved into storage for safekeeping. It’s remained out of public display for nearly 24 years as the sprawling infrastructure project progressed.

People in the city may have finally gotten used to seeing a tram/train glide through city streets.

Concerns have focused on the construction impacts, particularly a planned 5.78-kilometer open-cut section through central Kaohsiung, which is longer than earlier estimates. Residents and business owners worry about extended traffic disruptions, noise, dust, and road closures.

Advance ticket sales begin January 13 at midnight for eastern corridor reserved-seat trains, including Yilan, North-Link, South-Link, and cross-line services. Western corridor ticket sales open January 14 at midnight, with bookings available for travel through February 23. Real-name eastern corridor trains open for booking at midnight on January 15 for passengers whose ID numbers begin with U or V, registered residents of Hualien or Taitung counties, and their spouses or first-degree relatives.

Under the plan, the new line will stretch approximately 26.2 kilometers and include two new stations: an underground HSR Kaohsiung Station and an elevated HSR Pingtung Station. Both will be co-located with Taiwan Railways (台鐵) stations, allowing passengers to transfer between systems within the station concourse without going outside.