Taiwan Railways prioritizes Puyuma and Taroko trains with "all non-reserved seats" for Spring Festival

▲ The Puyuma train will offer "all non-reserved seat" services during the Lunar New Year holiday period. (Photo / Provided by Taitung County Government)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

Residents in Hualien and Taitung are in luck. Taiwan Railways has announced the launch of "all non-reserved seat" Puyuma and Taroko trains during the Spring Festival holiday period, along with an additional 186 standing tickets to ensure those in need don’t worry about not having a ticket to return home.

The high demand for Puyuma trains traveling between Hualien/Taitung and Taipei has long left one seat hard to come by, prompting Taiwan Railways to continuously seek solutions. With the Lunar New Year approaching, Taiwan Railways has decided to follow its existing non-reserved seat model,and for the first time, from the 18th to the 23rd, it will try adding four extra Puyuma trains and two extra Taroko trains as "all non-reserved seat" services daily, with the rule that they can only be purchased on the day of travel and are not available for advance booking.

According to Taiwan Railways' plan, the additional trains will have controlled total ticket sales, no assigned seating, and no advance reservations. In addition to the original 372 seats, each extra train will also sell 186 standing tickets. However, due to several sharp curves between Qidu and Shuangxi, the trains will reduce speed, resulting in a journey time increase of 10 to 30 minutes for the extra services. Taiwan Railways stated that if this trial proves successful, it will also launch similar services during the Qingming holiday.

In addition to the extra trains, Taiwan Railways will designate six non-extra Puyuma trains each day during the Lunar New Year period, opening the 7th and 8th carriages as non-reserved seating. It will also introduce 30% off "red-eye trains." The relevant schedules and additional service times will be announced this Friday, with tickets for the Spring Festival holiday period expected to go on sale on January 28.