The China Post
Date: April 4, 2017
By: Christine Chou
TAIPEI, Taiwan — The Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) said Monday
The Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) said Monday that it will express its objection to hikes on bullet train ticket prices in its capacity as the largest shareholder of Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation (THSRC) at the firm’s board meeting next month.
that it will express its objection to hikes on bullet train ticket prices in its capacity as the largest shareholder of Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation (THSRC) at the firm’s board meeting next month.
The MOTC’s Bureau of High Speed Rail announced Friday that it has adjusted the base rate for price per kilometer on high speed rail tickets from NT$4.009 to NT$4.134. The bureau is required by law to adjust the base rate when the consumer price index reaches an accumulated increase of more than 3 percent.
The new base rate can be used as a point of reference for price adjustments but any fare hike would require approval from the Legislative Yuan as the MOTC is the THSRC’s largest shareholder.
Under the MOTC’s new base rate, a single journey from Taipei to Kaohsiung on the Taiwan High Speed Rail can be increased by as much as NT$80, or 5.37 percent. The rail company confirmed it is considering fare hikes on Monday.
Currently, the ticket price for a single journey from Taipei to Kaohsiung is NT$1,490. This could rise to as high as NT$1,570 if calculated based on the newly adjusted price per kilometer. [FULL STORY]
