Building a 4x90-Minute Island Rail Network: Premier Cho Approves 60.6km HSR Extension to Yilan

Premier Cho Jung-tai stated on the 23rd, after reviewing a report from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications at the Executive Yuan meeting, that by 2026, the combined average daily ridership of the High-Speed Rail (HSR), Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA), and metro systems is projected to reach 3.524 million passengers. To realize the vision of balanced development across Taiwan, the government has proposed the '4x90-Minute Island Rail Network,' aiming to connect Taipei to Kaohsiung, Kaohsiung to Tainan and Taitung, Taitung to Hualien, and Hualien to Taipei—all within 90 minutes—thereby establishing a circular transportation artery and enhancing transportation resilience.

The Executive Yuan has officially approved the HSR extension to Yilan. The project has successfully passed environmental impact assessment and spans 60.6 kilometers, marking the first HSR station in eastern Taiwan. This initiative is expected to effectively alleviate the long-standing congestion on National Highway No. 5 and provide eastern Taiwan, which has long relied on TRA, with a new high-speed rail option. It will significantly improve travel convenience between Taipei and Yilan and boost rail transport capacity in eastern Taiwan, serving as a new starting point for strengthening transportation resilience in the region.

The HSR extension to Pingtung was confirmed in December 2024 to adopt the Kaohsiung route, extending from the HSR Zuoying Station through Kaohsiung Station to Liukuencuo in Pingtung, with a total length of approximately 26.2 kilometers. The Executive Yuan aims to secure environmental approval by 2027 and accelerate implementation to integrate with the Pingtung Science Park, Technology Industrial Park, and surrounding major developments.

Regarding the 140.7-kilometer South-Link Railway, 44 kilometers of single-track sections remain as bottleneck areas. The Executive Yuan approved the feasibility study by the end of December 2025 and plans to launch comprehensive planning in September 2026, fully advancing the TRA South-Link Line alignment improvement and bottleneck double-tracking project.

For the Hualien-Taitung region, the Executive Yuan approved the revised Hualien-Taitung Railway Double-Tracking Electrification Plan in March 2026. This project will double-track the 112.6-kilometer single-track section between Hualien and Zhinan Station in Taitung, with phased openings in three stages, significantly enhancing transportation capacity in the Hualien-Taitung Valley.

During the meeting, Premier Cho shared emotionally that both his grandfather and father were TRA employees, and he was born along the TRA Tamsui Line, growing up surrounded by the sounds of trains. From the transformation of TRA into the Taipei Metro to the HSR creating a 'one-day living circle' in western Taiwan, Taiwan's rail development has achieved remarkable progress. He instructed the Ministry of Transportation and related agencies to continue advancing the island-wide efficient rail network, strengthen public communication, and fulfill the goal of balanced development across Taiwan.