A prize valued at 62,120-Taiwan dollar ($2050 US) awaits the country's 23 millionth bullet train rider. The lucky passenger will receive 23 business class tickets (a value of 56,120 Taiwan dollars - $1,850 US), in addition to four models of the trains used in the high speed rail system.
Taiwan's high speed rail, which opened in January last year, has drastically cut the time required to travel from the capital, Taipei, to the southern city of Kaohsiung (Zuoying station, which is outside the downtown area). Reaching speeds up to 300 km/h, the trains take roughly 90 minutes to complete the whole route, as opposed to 4:30 on a normal train.
Its ridership has continued to grow. On April 6, the system carried over 132,000 passengers during the Qingming Jie Festival (Tomb Sweeping Holiday), breaking the previous record by nine thousand. The railway also has increased the number of trains from an initial 19 per direction to over 60 trains in each direction per day. Taiwan's airlines have reduced the number of flights on routes mirroring those of the high speed rail. China Airlines' subsidary, Mandarin Airlines, ceased altogether its service between Taichung and Taipei because of its competition with the bullet train.
Taiwan plans to extend the high speed rail to Nangang, a district in Eastern Taipei, and also to the center of Kaohsiung via an underground tunnel.
