Twenty EMU900 train cars manufactured by Hyundai Rotem Co are to be delivered to the Port of Hualien on Saturday, the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) said on Saturday as it unveiled the interior design of the new cars.
The carriages are part of a large procurement project that the TRA began in 2018 to upgrade its train service quality, with the agency allocating NT$25.3 billion (US$873.05 million at the current exchange rate) to purchase 520 of the commuter cars from the South Korean company.
Each EMU900 train consists of 10 cars, and they would help increase transport capacity by about 40 percent, the TRA said.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan Railways Administration
The trains’ control and management systems would also be upgraded, it added.
The interior of the new cars was shown to the media on Saturday, with the agency highlighting an energy-saving lighting system that automatically dims the lighting when it is too bright.
EMU trains currently in use have two wheelchair-parking areas in two cars, but an EMU900 train has space for eight, all in its No. 6 car, the agency said.
Each car No. 5 has a staff room where conductors can take a break, which means that they could reach wheelchair passengers faster if assistance is requested.
The agency said that it would also expand the space for bicycles on EMU900 trains in view of rising popularity of cycling tours, with each train being able to accommodate 12 bikes.
EMU900 trains would have seating areas specifically designed for pregnant women or parents with young children, with space next to a seat for parents to park baby strollers, it said.
A sensor, which has an icon of a pregnant woman on top, would be installed on board as well, which pregnant passengers can press to remind passengers to yield their seats.
Surveillance cameras would be installed to monitor the inside the cars and doors to ensure the safety of passengers, it said.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue