The Songshan Line to open "Numbers 12345" to be route codes for Taipei Metro’s five lines

▲The Songshan Line is set to open in November. (Photo / Credited to reporter Tsai Wen-jun)

Tourism Center / Comprehensive Report

The Taipei Metro Songshan Line is expected to open in November, completing the final piece of the city’s metro network puzzle. On the 11th, Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation announced that, to make it easier for commuters and tourists to identify the lines, the five routes will be assigned numbers based on the order in which they were opened.

After the Songshan Line opens, the five lines in the metro network will return to their original design, operating with the same color for each line. The Chinese names of the lines were determined based on two main principles: "familiarity among the public" and "ease of public identification," and are named respectively as the "Brown Line (Wenhu Line)," "Red Line (Tamsui-Xinyi Line)," "Green Line (Songshan-Xindian Line)," "Orange Line (Zhonghe-Xinlu Line)," and "Blue Line (Banqiao-Nangang Line)."

In addition, to facilitate public identification, Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation also referred to major global subway systems and assigned numbers to each line based on the "order of opening." However, single-station branches such as Xinbeitou Station and Xiaobitan Station will not be given separate numbers. The numbering for the five lines is as follows:

1.Wenhu Line: Route number 1 (brown), operating between Nangang Exhibition Center and Taipei Zoo.

2.Tamsui-Xinyi Line: Route number 2 (red), operating between Tamsui and Xiangshan.

3.Songshan-Xindian Line: Route number 3 (green), operating between Songshan and Xindian.

4.Zhonghe-Xinlu Line: Route number 4 (orange). Since the Zhonghe-Xinlu Line splits after Dazhongshan Station into two branches — one toward Luzhou and the other toward Huilong — the branches are further identified with letters A and B. The branch heading toward Huilong is numbered 4A; the branch toward Luzhou is 4B; and the branch heading toward Nanshihjiao is simply 4, to help passengers identify their route.

5.Banqiao-Nangang Line: Route number 5 (blue), operating between Nangang Exhibition Center and Yongning.

%The updated map will be released after the line openings (Photo / Courtesy of Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation official website)