All of these complaints I’m reading here about MRT riders in Taipei are making the Kaohsiung MRT riders look more civilized and evolved.
I can hardly believe we’re talking about people in the same country.
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Big issues are that you have to checkin there 3hrs before takeoff. Which is pretty poor, I mean if you have to be there 3 hrs before takeoff then what is the point - that is far too early to be heading to the airport esp when the longest you’re going to take to get there is around 45 mins.
When it started at TPE Main it was for China Airlines and Eva only, now you can also do it for Cathay and Starlux. At the New Tpe Insd Park it is China Airlines, EVA, Tiger Air and Air Asia.
I mean what a mess.
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It’s all the security BS and stuff.
There’s a reason why sometimes train is preferred if it was possible even if the trip might be a little longer, because you don’t have none of the BS with security, checking in luggage and all that with train. You can get to the station 5 minutes before the train gets there if need be. With flying you have to be there 3 hours before take off.
Well still better than the Kaohsiung Metro which has no city check in desks at all, and poor night service, waits up to 2o minutes for next train at Kaohsiung Airport METRO station. Most people use car or taxi.
Come on, KHH is within the city limits, and in fact only a 10-minute MRT ride from the center of the city (let’s say from Sanduo station). What kind of city check-in service do you need for a 10-minute ride?
Ok, let’s say you build a city check-in desk at Formosa Station. Nobody is going to take the MRT to Formosa Station, get off the train, walk to the check-in desk, check-in, walk back to the platform, and then wait for the next train to the airport. Might as well just take the train all the way to the airport without getting off.
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its 30 minutes+ to most used stations of Arena or Zuoying (the major transfer point to other rail and Kenting/Pingtung buses), those living in Southern end of the city will use Taxi/Cars, tourist use Metro or tour bus (or recently saw bus for group deportation haha).
The MAIN station is only Main in name, its really not a nice area of the city at all. No offices, good hotels (there some cheap ones) or any attraction there plus no car parks anywhere near.
Since on this topic I will rant more about the Main Station. The TRA is underground now which is nice, and the station is newer. But no retail, coffee or much else other lunch box type of place , not what I expected it to be in 2024. The older station had a Starbucks and few other things which turns out is better than now. When the new station opened there was some retail and fast food, it seems its gone replaced with comic/cos play , maid care and other odd ball shops. Not only that when go up to street level not much at all, area of urban decay to me.
Five years since renewal, its not good now at all
news back in 2018
Also when i was searching saw this attack on staff at the Airport station
She can get a sticker that says “I’m pregnant and need a seat” from the information booth. Just stick it on her tummy and have her stand right in front of the occupied priority seat.
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I don’t think there is anything wrong with asking. There was a period of time where people who had invisible needs were being chastised for using the seats because they didn’t look disabled.
The campaign to promote priority seats was too successful and the authorities had to dial it back in recent years because people were chastising others for it.
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And then if they don’t move get your camera out. They’ll get up. If they don’t they have a hidden disability maybe a mental one.
I think the sticker is a good idea.
No major transit hub at Arena station. Way more people get on at Formosa Station (transfer from Orange Line).
Now, regarding buses to Zuoying Station: There are buses from Kenting and Pingtung that go directly to KHH itself (and Main Station). Why would people go all the way north to Zuoying if they’re flying out of KHH?
Regarding HSR to Zuoying: I doubt very many people take the HSR to Zuoying to fly out of KHH. From Central Tainan to KHH is faster by TRA express and MRT. From Chiayi, probably faster to fly out of Taichung Airport.
Even if we build a check-in desk at Zuoying station, what if I live at Ecological Station? Or any other station? Then I need to take the MRT north one stop to Zuoying, get off the train, check in, and then get on another train going south to KHH? City check-in desks only make sense if it’s located at a centralized terminal station where everybody (>90%) gets on the train. For example, Taoyuan or Hong Kong Airport Express.
The KH Main Station is still under renovation. I’m sure there will be retail area once it is complete.
Asking (politely) can also be a good way to let someone know about the situation. On a busy train a few years ago I was immersed in a book (and sitting in a regular seat, not priority) when I suddenly realized a woman standing in front of me was quite visibly pregnant. I immediately gave her my seat. I don’t know how long she’d been there.
I like to think that I’m usually more aware of people who need seats more than I do, but that day at least, I was oblivious.
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On my MRT train yesterday a blind man was accompanied onto the train by an MRT official, but was just taken onto the train but not to a priority seat. Sitting in the priority seat were junior high school students immersed in their phones as usual.
A lady helped the guy over to that seat and shamed the students into giving up the seat, which they did so grumpily and reluctantly.
Standards in this have dropped. I would love to get a signal-jamming device that blocks the phone signal in the immediate area and just watch all the stupid faces drop as they can’t get a signal on their phones.
Dream on I guess.
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jamming of any cell signals is illegal in most countries, I’m pretty sure it’s illegal in Taiwan too. I know having a cell signal booster in Taiwan is illegal unless installed by a telcom.
The reason is what if there’s an emergency? If the signal extend beyond an MRT station this can be a huge trouble if someone keels over and isn’t able to call for help.
I got a sticker after my operation. I had to sit.
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Why can’t they use check in at the airport mrt much? It makes no sense, considering that this would reduce all the luggage people are carrying on the train, which is presumably why it’s there. Express trains have a dedicated luggage car. If they’re not going to use it it’s a waste of resources.
This is a train heading to danshui at 5:30pm. This is odd. Usually it’s packed like sardines.
Or is this the phantom train taking me to the “other side”?
I met a dude working for Otis and told him about how the inventor sat in the elevator while his assistant cut the cable to demonstrate how safe it is. I’m surprised he didn’t know.
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You’re already at Hongshulin at 5:37 p.m. Might be a little early for the majority of evening commuters coming from work, and presumably a lot of people got off the train already.
The train could have originated from the Workshops on the Dansui side of Beitou.
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I’ve been on the train at Guandu, and believe me, at about 5:30 it’s packed like sardines. It gets packed from about 4pm in fact. Even if it’s from Hongshulin. A lot of people get off at Hongshulin to get on the LRT but I never use them, because that LRT runs too slow.
I thought maybe it came out of the Fuxinggang depot or something…
We have that gigantic colorful badge from the hospital and people still ignore it.
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