Hi Speed Railwatch

[jpatokal]

The official attributed the increased volume to the THSRC's decision to provide additional trains and some free seats, a service that drew a lot of impromptu passengers, adding that during the Chinese New Year holiday most travelers had reserved seats for planned tours.

That's "free" as "you can pick your own seat and stand if there's none left", not "free" as in "no charge". Until recently, THSR trains were 100% reserved.

It's a good move though -- unreserved seats are a mite cheaper, and you can now get to your destination if you really need to even if all seats are sold out. Japan's Shinkansen have had a few unreserved carriages for ages.

[GWR]

Bullet train to welcome 23 millionth passenger

CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) said yesterday that with passenger volume continuing to rise, it is now expecting the 23 millionth passenger, or the number of the nation's total population.

THSRC officials said that as of Thursday, the company has sold 22,873,331 high speed rail tickets, and they think that it will see the 23 millionth passenger in the next few days.

To celebrate yet another milestone in the system, the officials said they are preparing to present the 23 millionth passenger with 23 business-class tickets as well as high speed rail system memorabilia.

Since the north-south high speed rail system was inaugurated on Jan. 5, 2007, it has continued to see new records in passenger volume and revenues, officials said.

The passenger volume and revenues reached 2.31 million and NT$1.903 billion (US$62.59 million), respectively, in March, both setting records in a single month.

http://207.5.19.33/forum/newreply.ph...uote=1&p=20646

[GWR]

http://207.5.19.33/forum/newreply.ph...uote=1&p=20646

Monday, April 14, 2008

Prize awaits 23 millionth high-speed rail rider

The China Post news staff

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- The Taiwan High-Speed Railway Corp. is actively locating the 23 millionth passenger, already recorded on Saturday, and will give over NT$60,000 worth of gifts to the lucky passenger, according to company sources.

Officials with the Taichung branch said that based on the ticket-selling records, the ticket for the 23 millionth passenger was purchased at the Tainan Station at 11:41 a.m., April 12. The ticket for an adult was valid on April 12 for trip from Tainan Station to Taichung Station. Bearing a code of 11-2-01-0-103-0365, the ticket was for a non-reserved train.

The officials called for the passenger holding the ticket with the identical data as mentioned above to contact a THSR specialist in charge, by calling 02-8725-1107 or 0935-489-722.

In order to thank the passenger for his/her patronage to the THSR, the company will give the lucky passenger 23 business-class-ticket coupons valid for a full year.

The passenger can exchange the coupons, valued at NT$56,120, for 23 business-class tickets valid for any train schedule and trip distance within the validity period.

In addition, the passenger will also be given a set of four different models of 700T trains now running on the high-seed rail system, valued at NT$6,000.

Accordingly, the total value of the gifts will come to NT$62,120. The THSR decided to give gifts to the 23 millionth passenger, mainly because the number is roughly the same as Taiwan's current population.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/%...e%2Dawaits.htm

[GWR]

Wednesday, May 28, 2008
THSRC breaks even for first time
Reuters

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan's bullet train broke even last month for the first time since starting service at the beginning of 2007, giving it leverage to list on the island's main stock exchange, a transportation official said Tuesday.

Due in part to a 136 percent year-on-year ridership increase last month, the train operator Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) posted revenues and expenditures of about NT$1.9 billion (US$62 million) each in April, said Pang Jar-hua, the transportation ministry's high-speed rail director general.

"It's the first time they've recorded break-even numbers," Pang told a news conference. "In April they didn't lose money."

The high-speed rail corporation, which runs the Japanese-style bullet trains, has said it aimed to list on Taiwan's main board in the second half of 2008 after breaking even in its first 18 months.

High Speed Rail Corp. currently trades on Taiwan's grey market, where volumes are relatively thin compared to the larger main board. Its shares were down 1.44 percent Tuesday at NT$9.56, lagging the main TAIEX index's 0.81 percent rise.

The trains run on a 345-kilometer (214-mile) route between Taipei and the southern port city of Kaohsiung. The US$15 billion bullet train system is the fastest ground-based line outside Japan, reaching speeds up to 315 km/h (196 miles/hour).

Passenger volume was an average of 85,000 trips per day, or 2.545 million total trips in April, Pang said. The company, which is adding trains as it lowers weekday prices, aims for a maximum of 145,000 trips per day by 2033.

The launch of Taiwan's High Speed Rail, which uses Japan's Shinkansen bullet train technology, has intensified competition with domestic airline routes, with Taipei-Kaohsiung airfares down to slightly below high speed rail's full fares.

http://207.5.19.33/forum/newreply.ph...uote=1&p=20707

[GWR]

Saturday, May 31, 2008
THSRC to increase service; revenues lag
CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) will offer expanded service beginning July 4, with 14 more scheduled trains per day set to come on line, CEO Ou Chin-der said yesterday at the company's annual shareholders meeting.

Beginning in July, service on peak travel days will be increased to 140 regularly scheduled trains from 126 per day, while service on off-peak days will be expanded to 128 scheduled trains from the current 114, Ou noted.

One of the focal points of the shareholders meeting was the potential impact rising fuel prices would have on THSRC's operations.

Ou acknowledged that with energy costs accounting for 15 percent of the company's total costs, the increase in fuel prices would be felt. But he contended that compared to other forms of transportation, the high-speed rail remained the most energy-efficient and was still an attractive option for travelers.

The high-speed rail has been a money loser since beginning operations in January 2007. While revenues have improved this year, company officials said more needed to be done.

THSRC Chairwoman Nita Ing noted that the railway's revenues for the first four months of 2008 stood at 52 percent of the company's revenues for all of 2007.

But while year-on-year sales had improved and ridership was up, the proportion of Taiwan's population that had used the railway remained low, she said, an indication that the company needed to improve its marketing efforts to expand its customer base.

On March 31, the high-speed rail launched a promotional campaign to improve ridership, offering substantial discounts on weekday fares, but Ou said its benefits have been limited.

Passenger volume had increased by 10 percent every month since the promotion began, but overall revenues had remained little changed compared to previous months, Ou said.

The company will study whether or not to adjust fares again after the campaign ends June 30, he added.

Ing defended her company's lagging results, saying that high speed railways around the world usually struggle in their first three years, weighed down by heavy interest burdens.

She said the company was currently restructuring its financing and noted that once the process was completed -- hopefully by the third quarter -- THSRC's interest costs would be lower and the balance sheet more promising.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/%...THSRC%2Dto.htm

[GWR]

No more Taipei-Tainan flights after July
The China Post news staff
Wednesday, July 23, 2008

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- There will be no flight service between Taipei and Tainan in southern Taiwan starting in August, leaving only the Taipei-Kaohsiung air service, officials at the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA).

The CAA approved a request from TransAsia Airways, presently the only air carrier operating the Taipei-Tainan route, to suspend flights because of the dwindling number of passengers and soaring fuel costs.

The officials said they gave the approval mainly because there are alternate choices for passengers, including the high-speed rail, the conventional railway, and bus service on the west coast of the island.

TransAsia will give refunds to customers who already booked flights for after July 31.

With the withdrawal of TransAsia from the route, Mandarin Airlines will become the only domestic air carrier flying the route linking Taipei in the north and southern Taiwan.

Mandarin, affiliate of China Airlines, currently provides two or three flights per day on the Taipei-Kaohsiung route with an occupancy rate of 60 to 70 percent.

But the air carrier will reduce to two flights a day beginning on Aug. 1.

Company executives said they will have to stop flying the route if the occupancy rate drops to below 60 percent.

While the domestic air carriers continue slashing their flights, the high-speed rail service between Taipei and Kaohsiung is enjoying spectacular growth.

Customers took 15.56 million rides aboard the bullet trains as of mid-July this year, surpassing the total number of rides for the whole year of 2007.

It takes 50 minutes and costs NT$1,450 for flights between Taipei and Kaohsiung.

It takes two hours and about the same price for the high-speed rail service.

People who are not in a hurry may take the conventional railway service offered by the state-owned Taiwan Railway Administration. It costs NT$845 and takes 4 hours and 30 minutes to travel between the two largest cities on the island.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/%.../No%2Dmore.htm

[GWR]

Mandarin to cut flights to reduce loss
The China Post news staff
Friday, August 15, 2008

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Passengers may soon be denied the chance to take domestic flights along western Taiwan, as Mandarin Airlines has decided to cut the number of Taipei-Kaohsiung flights to seven, or one flight per day, from the existing 12, starting tomorrow. The firm has also applied for suspending all such flights starting Sept. 1.

Mandarin Airlines, now the only operator of the historically "golden flight route," was forced to reduce the number of flights due to its failure to survive the competition from the increasing popularity of the high-speed railway system with passengers.

..........

Hsu said the company can hardly survive if the passenger boarding rate falls under 60 percent. This, coupled with the increasing number of daily high-speed rail trains and the growing substitutability of the HSR system for flights, has made it increasingly difficult for Mandarin to sustain the Taipei-Kaohsiung flights.

..........

Meanwhile, there were as many as 520 flights taking off from and landing at the Taipei Songshan Airport in 1997, with one flight taking off from the airport for Kaohsiung every 15 minutes. The lobby of the airport used to be crowded with passengers on waiting lists.

But the improvement of land transportation systems in western Taiwan, the electrification of the Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) and particularly the launch of the HSR system in January 2007 have all combined to undermine domestic flight business.

Soon after the inauguration of the HSR system, domestic airlines were forced to terminate first thei

r Taipei-Taichung flights and then the Taipei-Chiayi flights. In August this year, the Taipei-Tainan flights were also suspended.

What's worse is that Mandarin Airlines has applied to the CAA for terminating the Taipei-Kaohsiung flights to cut operating losses, starting from Sept. 1.

In a sharp contrast, the Taipei High-Speed Railway Corp. has been enjoying a rapid increase in the number of passengers since it kicked off the HSR system.

Statistics showed that from Jan. 1 to Aug. 9 this year, the average daily number of passengers taking the HSR trains stood at 90,000, sharply increasing from the corresponding figure of 30,000 seen in the initial operating months of the HSR system.

The same tallies indicated that as of Aug. 9 this year, the THSRC scored total revenue of NT$14 billion, exceeding the total annual revenue registered in 2007.

THSRC's vice president and spokesman Chia Hsien-der said that the spiraling oil prices, punctual arrival and departure of trains and availability of many options in schedules have prompted quite a few people to choose the HSR system instead of taking flights or driving on their own. This has enabled the THSRC's revenues and number of passengers to surge rapidly.

THSRC is launching a discount program to solicit more patronage. Under the program, the firm offers a 36 percent discount on ticket fares for commercial-class train seats, and 28 percent for non-reserved train seats, from every Monday to Thursday.

The firm is planning to come up with an off-peak-hour discount fare program by the end of the year, to further raise the number of passengers.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/n...andarin-to.htm

See also thread on Taiwan's dying domestic air services:
http://207.5.19.33/forum/showthread....2460#post22460

[GWR]

More high speed trains to cope with volume

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- The high speed rail system will increase the number of scheduled runs and purchase new trains next year to cope with increasing passenger volume, Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) Executive Director Ou Chin-der said Thursday.

Ou made the remarks at the High Speed Rail Yenchao Main Workshop in Kaohsiung County, southern Taiwan, during an open day for the media.

The THSRC will increase the number of scheduled trains after Chinese New Year, which falls on Jan. 26, 2009, as the system’s passenger load factor after the holiday is expected to exceed 50 percent, Ou said.

The exact number of additional runs will be announced at a later date, he said.

At present, the system carries an average of 90,000 passengers per day, with a passenger load factor of 45 percent to 47 percent.

The system has a total of 30 trains that can operate a maximum of 176 two-way runs per day, Ou went on, adding that the ceiling is very likely to be reached at the end of next year.

Passenger volume is expected to have reached between 140,000-150,000 per day by that time, with a possible maximum volume of 176,000, and is likely to hit 200,000 during peak hours in 2010, Ou said.

To cope with the continuous increase in passenger volume, the THSRC will buy between six and 12 new trains from Japan next year.

The THSRC will also consider the possibility of working with Taiwanese companies on the interior design of the trains if sufficiently skilled local designers can be found, Ou continued, adding that the new trains will start operating in 2011.

The new trains will be part of a long-term THSRC purchase project that is being carried out in several phases with the aim of increasing the number of trains to 54 by 2033, Ou said.

The system will also focus on attracting passengers by providing better service quality rather than by offering more discounts, as some tickets are already discounted to the tune of 35 percent, Ou continued, adding that further price cuts would undermine the THSRC’s financial management as well as endanger the bus transport industry.

The 345-km high speed rail system, which runs along Taiwan’s west coast providing rapid transport from Taipei City in the north to Kaohsiung City in the south, began operations in January 2007.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/n.../More-high.htm

[Yappofloyd]

A less optimistic article than the previous one.

Taiwan high speed rail refinancing agreed 13 August 2009 IRG
TAIWAN: When it opened in May 2007, the Taipei - Kaohsiung route was hailed as ‘the world’s first privately-funded high speed line’, but Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp has been finding times tough. Whilst traffic has risen steadily to an average of 87 000 passengers/day for the first half of this year, this is far removed from the optimistic 275 000 forecast by the government when the project was launched.

There have been rumours that THSRC was in financial trouble, and could end up being taken over by the government. Earlier this year we received reports of belt tightening. Completion of the eastern extension from Taipei to Nankang is now on hold indefinitely, and work on the outstanding intermediate stations has been stopped. Several departments have been merged or abolished, with a voluntary redundancy scheme to reduce the payroll from 3 600 to 2 500.

In a tale that has many parallels with the Eurotunnel saga, Taiwan’s NT$500bn high speed line was 80% funded through bank debt, leaving a legacy of huge interest payments. In 2008 THSRC reported revenues of NT$23bn, but interest payments of NT$17·4bn and what Chairman Nita Ing described as ‘unreasonable’ depreciation charges of NT$18·9bn led to an overall deficit of NT$25bn. In the two years since opening, the railway has racked up losses of NT$67·5bn, equivalent to two-thirds of its equity capital.

On July 13 the Ministry of Transport & Communications announced that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with THSRC and the Bank of Taiwan, paving the way for a refinancing deal to be concluded by the end of this year. A BoT-led consortium of no more than 10 banks will provide a new loan to pay off two syndicated loans and a bond issue totalling NT$390bn. As well as resetting the grace period on capital repayments, this is expected to result in a much lower interest rate of around 2·6%.

As with the Eurotunnel refinancing concluded earlier this year, simplification of the capital structure would seem to be the right way to go. But with limited liquidity in the financial markets, it may not prove easy to find 10 banks willing to lend up to NT$40bn each, even with government pressure behind the scenes.
http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/s.../browse/1.html

[Yappofloyd]

Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp orders more trains, IRG, 28 May 2012
TAIWAN: Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp has ordered a further four Series 700T trainsets from a consortium of Japanese firms Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Toshiba Corp.

The 12-car trains designed for 300 km/h operation are scheduled to be delivered between December 2012 and November 2015. They will enable THSRC to increase service frequencies to meet rising demand and accommodate traffic expected from a 5·7 km extension to Nangang station in Taipei which is scheduled to open in 2015.

Announcing the contract on May 24, KHI saifdit would be responsible for design of the aluminium car bodyshells and bogies, while Toshiba will provide 25 kV 60 Hz electrical equipment and on-board systems including air-conditioning, and communications.

The contract includes two options for four more trains.