【Art & Culture on Thursdays】Explore Lucy Taipei Railway Workshop at the Taipei Railway Culture Festival

Article by MOOK Scenic Spots Family Travel Life Network Editorial Department – Compiled & Reported

The Taipei Railway Workshop of Taiwan Railways, built in the 1930s and known as the "train hospital," is hosting its second Railway Culture Festival. Themed "Glamour. North Workshop," the one-month event runs from September 27 to October 26. Visitors can see a steam hammer from the Liu Mingchuan era of 1889, Qing Dynasty, the technician training institute, train repair processes, as well as two large-scale installations titled “Aurora Frontier” and “Sound Journey.” There will also be multiple art and cultural activities, railway lectures, and factory tours. On weekends, visitors can ride a free miniature steam train.

Located in the Diesel Electric Factory, “Aurora Frontier” uses light projections from track carts to showcase the interplay between railways and the city. “Sound Journey” documents sounds along Taiwan’s railway lines, paired with 30 oversized images of maintenance operations across the entire workshop, creating an immersive railway journey.

The original Taipei Machinery Bureau was the predecessor of Taipei Airport. After the Japanese arrived in Taiwan, it was used as an artillery factory before being taken over by the Taiwan Governor-General's Railway Bureau. Later, due to expanding transport demands, it was relocated. In the 1930s, as part of the largest railway factory relocation project in East Asia, it moved to the current site at Section 5, Civic Boulevard — the "Taipei Airport" — covering an area of 19 hectares and earning the nickname "train hospital."