A 50-year-old Alishan Forest Railway diesel-powered locomotive on loan to the UK carried its first group of passengers in Wales over the weekend.
The DL-34 engine, on loan for an initial period of three years, is operating on the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway (W&LLR), a narrow gauge heritage line that runs about 13.7km between the towns of Welshpool and Llanfair Caereinion.
At Saturday’s launch ceremony in Wales, Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency Director-General Lin Hwa-ching (林華慶) and W&LLR chairman Steve Clews fitted a headboard onto the locomotive.
Photo courtesy of the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency
The loan of the locomotive was “the culmination of four years of discussions,” and was a great opportunity for the two railways to continue building their friendship, a W&LLR post on Facebook quoted Clews as saying at the launch ceremony.
Alishan Forest Railway and W&LLR signed a sister railway agreement in September 2017, after which the loan was proposed.
Lin said at the ceremony that the DL-34 would “traverse the beautiful hills and plains of Wales gracefully” under the excellent care of the W&LLR.
Photo courtesy of the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency
Former British Trade and Cultural Office director Michael Reilly, now a company secretary at W&LLR, said that many people had been looking forward to the locomotive’s operation in Wales.
The passengers on the first trip on Sunday included local government officials and railway fans, not just from the UK, but also Malaysia, said Reilly, who had helped to make the arrangements for the loan.
The locomotive was delivered in February last year after a 9,971km journey from Alishan to Wales. Work was then carried out over 12 months to modify systems, test the locomotive and train its drivers, W&LLR said.
The Welsh line also has a sister agreement with Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar), which was signed in December 2018.
Under that agreement, the Welsh railway loaned its Dougal locomotive — a narrow gauge steam engine — to Chiayi County, the W&LLR Web site says.
In 2004, Taisugar lent W&LLR a Diepholzer Maschinenfabrik Fritz Schottler GmbH (DIEMA) locomotive — a diesel engine built in 1979 in Germany for the company to haul sugar cane.
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
Snow fell in the mountainous areas of northern, central and eastern Taiwan in the early hours of yesterday, as cold air currents moved south. In the northern municipality of Taoyuan, snow started falling at about 6am in Fusing District (復興), district head Su Tso-hsi (蘇佐璽) said. By 10am, Lalashan National Forest Recreation Area, as well as Hualing (華陵), Sanguang (三光) and Gaoyi (高義) boroughs had seen snowfall, Su said. In central Taiwan, Shei-Pa National Park in Miaoli County and Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Nantou County saw snowfall of 5cm and 6cm respectively, by 10am, staff at the parks said. It began snowing
HOLIDAY EXERCISE: National forest recreation areas from north to south offer travelers a wide choice of sights to connect with nature and enjoy its benefits Hiking is a good way to improve one’s health, the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency said, as it released a list of national forest recreation areas that travelers can visit during the Lunar New Year holiday. Taking a green shower of phytoncides in the woods could boost one’s immunity system and metabolism, agency Director-General Lin Hwa-ching (林華慶) cited a Japanese study as saying. For people visiting northern Taiwan, Lin recommended the Dongyanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Taoyuan’s Fusing District (復興). Once an important plantation in the north, Dongyanshan (東眼山) has a number of historic monuments, he said. The area is broadly covered by
Global bodies should stop excluding Taiwan for political reasons, President William Lai (賴清德) told Pope Francis in a letter, adding that he agrees war has no winners. The Vatican is one of only 12 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Taipei has watched with concern efforts by Beijing and the Holy See to improve ties. In October, the Vatican and China extended an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for four years, pointing to a new level of trust between the two parties. Lai, writing to the pope in response to the pontiff’s message on Jan. 1’s
RSS