Kaohsiung Light Rail’s C20-24 stations to open on Wednesday

高雄輕軌C20-24站週三開通

The section from C21A to C21 passes through scenic Totoro Tunnel, formed by Madagascar almond trees on both sides of the track


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Kaohsiung Circular Light Rail’s new section from the TRA Museum of Fine Arts Station to the Heart of Love River Station (C20-24) will be open on Wednesday (Oct. 5), and the whole circular route is on track to be completed by the end of next year, Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said on Monday.

Chen said that light rail is an important part of green transportation, and the goal has been to complete a circular light rail route in the city, CNA reported. However, the construction of the light rail system was suspended in 2018 by then-Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) due to controversies surrounding the construction at the Museum of Fine Arts and Dashun Road.

According to Chen, after he was elected Kaohsiung mayor in a by-election in 2020, he resumed the construction of the light rail and tried hard to expedite construction to make up for lost time, per CNA.

In addition to the resumption of the light rail construction, two other Kaohsiung rapid transit projects, which include the extension of the Red Line from Gangshan to Luzhu and the Yellow Line, have been started, and construction of the Dalaio to Linyuan line, which has been approved by the Cabinet, is expected to start at the end of this year or early next year.

The section of the light rail from TRA Museum of Fine Arts West Station (C21A) to TRA Museum of Fine Arts Station (C21) passes through the so-called Totoro Tunnel, which is formed by Madagascar almond trees on both sides of the track, giving riders a feeling of riding through a green tunnel, per CNA.

When the section from the Sinshang Elementary School Station (C25) to the St. Joseph Hospital Station (C31) is completed by the end of next year, the complete circular route will be achieved.