Lunar New Year shuttle buses in Taiwan's Taroko to operate as usual

台灣太魯閣的農曆春節接駁巴士照常服務

Three shuttle bus lines will serve visitors to Taroko National Park Feb. 13-15


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taroko National Park’s free shuttle bus service during the Lunar New Year will be brought back this year from Feb. 13-15 despite concerns of a COVID-19 resurgence.

Amid fears of cluster infections, many Lunar New Year festivities across Taiwan have been canceled or postponed. Nevertheless, Taroko National Park Headquarters said on Thursday (Jan. 21) that the park’s Lunar New Year shuttle buses will run as in past years, according to CNA.

Taroko National Park official Nei Shih-chao (聶士詔) said that in line with traffic control to be enforced on the Central Cross-Island Highway during the holiday, all vehicles except buses and the cars of guests who stay at hotels within the controlled area will be barred from entering the national park from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the period of Feb. 13-15.

Travelers visiting the national park during this time can take free shuttle buses from the Xincheng train station, Nei said.

He added that three shuttle bus lines will be provided for the public during the three-day period. The blue line starts from the train station and ends at Tianxiang, servicing 11 stops along the route.

A shuttle bus will leave every 30 minutes. The last bus will leave Xincheng Station at 1 p.m., while the last bus to depart Tianxiang will do so at 2:30 p.m., Nei said.

He went on to say that the red line shuttles between Xincheng Station and the Buluowan Recreation Area, while the green line shuttles between Buluowan and Tianxiang. For both lines, a bus will depart about every 10 minutes, with the last leaving at 1 p.m.

About 20,000 people take the free shuttle buses every year, Nei said.