The state-run Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) has submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Transportation and Communications to raise its ticket prices by between 11 and 27 percent.
Deputy Minister of Transportation and Communications Allen Hu (胡湘麟) on Saturday said that the proposed fare hikes need to be discussed by a review committee, but a meeting date has not been set.
With its fares frozen for 28 years since 1995, the TRA proposed raising its ticket prices, which would generate a 1 percent profit for the longtime loss-making train operator.
Photo: Cheng Wei-chi, Taipei Times
Under the proposal, tickets for Tze-Chiang express trains would increase 11 percent, while fares for Chu-Kuang express trains would rise 15 percent and tickets for local trains would increase 27 percent.
Under the new prices, the fare from Taipei to Kaohsiung would increase from NT$843 to NT$940 on a Tze-Chiang train, while the cost would rise from NT$114 to NT$145 for a local train from Taipei to Hsinchu.
Former transportation minister Ho Chen-tan (賀陳旦) said that increases do not have to apply to all passengers, but only for certain users, similar to how Taiwan Power Co charges different rates for household and industrial users.
Lee Ker-tsung (李克聰), a transportation technology and management expert with the Consumers’ Foundation, said the TRA could increase fares only for certain lines, such as sightseeing and busy commuter routes.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Wang Kuo-tsai (王國材) yesterday said that as the TRA is still in the corporatization process, ticket prices would not change before the end of the year.
The fare adjustment would also need to be approved by the new board of directors at that time, before discussions could be held by the ministry, he said.
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