The Taoyuan system was marked by numerous delays.
The train manufacturer, Marubeni, is not known for manufacturing trains. Whoever designed the interiors of the trains (seats etc) should be smacked in the head.
In short, it’s not state of the art (for that, see the new Hitachi trains operated by TRA). But the express trains do work and in my experience at least they show up on time!
Guy
Bangkok’s airport link also had a night-and-day difference between its express trains (which they pulled for “maintenance” and apparently never brought back) and its regular trains. The regular trains make the loudest possible noise when the doors close.
The Taoyuan express may not be up to the same standard as HK but isn’t that bad either. Plus, you can use Beimen instead of Taipei Main! 
Yeah it was the all stations one. I did watch an express train though and it was moving as slowly as the all stops train. Maybe they were having track trouble? Also the express tracks weren’t being used and didn’t look like they’d been used for quite some time.
I think it slows down when it passes a collectors train.
These trains were going about 10-15kph. The only time they went at a bit of speed was entering and exiting the tunnel to Taipei. It’s also a bit of a walk no matter if you go from Beimen or Taipei Main stations. Seems really badly designed and with all the flattened properties waiting for development for a declining population it really feels like a white elephant in action.
Yeah. They even brake on the downhill. Plus it’s a 17k trek from the station to the MRT.
You want some fun? They should put youbike stations underground. That’ll help speed things up! 
Guy
No, those little 
thingys
The last time I was in Auckland (OK, the only time I was in Auckland), lime green versions of those guys were littered around the city everywhere. It was sight to behold.
I can just imagine how much Taipei City government would love them!
Guy
I used one in Wellington last time I was back on account of I was leg disabled. Not cheap.
First thing I thought of when I saw those things lying around everywhere: they will lead to a storm of controversy and eventually be banned.
I wonder if they are still around . . .
Guy
Ditto HK Station to Central Station or Kowloon Station to Austin Station. Just sayin’.
Bangkok’s Phaya Thai Station basically gets it right – just one floor above the regular (sky) train.
They use the same tracks, only in stations they switch to have express trains pass. Anyways, trains are timed and they can not exceed speed that is allotted to them, they put a specific time on travel from Taipei Main Station to terminal 1 and 2, 35-39 minutes.
Taipei Main Station-Taoyuan Airport Station
| Express | Commuter | |
|---|---|---|
| A1 Taipei Main Station | －－－－ | －－－－ |
| A3 New Taipei Industrial Park Station | 9 mins | 10 mins |
| A8 Chang Gung Memorial Hospital Station | 21 mins | 28 mins |
| A12 Airport Terminal 1 Station | 35 mins | 49 mins |
| A13 Airport Terminal 2 Station | 39 mins | 52 mins |
The only reason why trains would go that slow is if there was a serious defect with the tracks. I’m sure when they fix the problem the travel time will be cut down by quite a lot. The train itself seemed to move slower than the lightrail part of the MRT and even the Maokong Gondola. On top of that the bus is cheaper even if you have to deal with traffic. And the bus has free WiFi. I’m telling you there’s not much highlight to the airport MRT. I’d rather get the bus to Taoyuan HSR station and then the high speed train to Taipei or banqiao.