ByMOOKScenic Spots Home Editorial Team
Built in the first year of the Taisho era(AD1912years), the century-old Alishan Forest Railway, also known as the Forest Railway Line, is Taiwan’s only operational high-altitude forestry railway system, with all its routes located within Chiayi City and County, making it a renowned living fossil attraction in Taiwan. However, the railway has recently faced funding shortages and may cease operations in the future, much to the disappointment of many.
The Alishan Forest Railway is famous for its steam locomotives and is Asia’s highest narrow-gauge mountain railway, surpassing the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway in India in altitude (Image source / Taiwan Tourism Bureau)
Due to the impact of weather on high-altitude terrain, incidents such as fallen trees occurred as early as 2010, and later, typhoons further disrupted operations, leading to severe financial shortfalls that may force the railway to shut down.
Currently, the operational route from Chiayi to Alishan is about 71 kilometers long, making it one of the world’s renowned mountain railways (Image provided / Forestry Bureau, Chiayi Forest District Office)
[Alishan Forest Railway Spring Festival Booking Information]
During the Spring Festival, the main line (between Chiayi and Fenchihu) will add one additional round-trip service between Chiayi and Fenchihu daily from January 28 to February 1, 2017. Tickets for the Spring Festival period will be available exclusively online starting at 6:00 AM on January 5, 2017 (Thursday) (excluding phone and voice call bookings).
To alleviate holiday crowds traveling to the mountainous Fenchihu area, starting January 1, 2017, the Chungxing Express trains (311) and (312) originally running from Chiayi Station to Duli Mountain Station on Sundays will be extended to run between Chiayi Station and Fenchihu Station. Trains (300) and (301) will have adjusted schedules, while trains (313), (303), (302), and (314) will be suspended. For related train schedules, please contact the Forest Railway Chiayi Ticket Office at (05) 2256918, 2229010, or Beimen Station at (05) 2768094.
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》http://www.mook.com.tw/article.php?op=articleinfo&articleid=14173