Are there any train/rail museums in Northern Taiwan? I would love to feed my sons fascination with a trip to museum where he could se them up close.
Only know about the one in Miaoli though there is an engine or two on display at 228 park in Taipei, outside in a glass box.
Edit: found this
I’m not sure about an actual museum but along the Pingxi rail line there are old engines and such your son can get right up and explore, pull levers, pretend he is the conductor, etc. There are also some working jiggers to play on.
Stop at Shifen at the coal museum and also Jingtong, the last stop.
Once a month they also bring out the old steam engines to run the Pingxi line. Hell, even a grown boy like me thinks that’s pretty cool.
Oh, another thing, they just opened an old 3km long rail tunnel at Fulong beach. Fun to ride or walk through.
Changhua is supposedly working on a museum, but I don’t know how it is progressing.
Some pics I took of a friend’s kids in Jingtong and the old steam engine when it rested in Shifen. The great thing about these villages is you can get right down on the tracks and there’s lots of the old train facilties around, in addition to some old coal mining tunnels you can safely enter.
Nice pics MM.
There’s the fan-shaped garage in Changhua. Not exactly a museum because it’s still in use, but you are allowed to freely walk around inside it.
craigfergusonimages.com/2008 … ed-garage/
Thanks. From what I’ve heard the Changhua fan shaped garage is going to be revamped as part of a railway tourism initiative.
i seem to recall a small open air display in TaiDong near the station, with about a dozen locos, mostly steam, and a couple of old diesel-eletric shunters etc. it’s not the north, though, but i thought it was worth adding to the list.
took some photos there once many many years ago… pre-digital.
I saw some old stuff sitting outside at Dawu station south of Taidung too. Nobody around those small stations so I was able to wander, board, take pics and generally enjoy myself with no hassles. Even had a couple beers sitting in the cab of an old yard loco.
Thank you - first stop Miaoli then will try to find time for the Pingxi rail line.
There’s an old train station up by Sanyi. I think it’s called Shengxing. They have some of those push carts they let people use. Old Japanese signals and stuff. It’s the highest and steepest station in Northern Taiwan.
Although not in northern Taiwan, 奮起湖 fènqǐhú, not far from 嘉義 jiāyì, was a popular stop for tourists taking the train from 嘉義 to 阿里山. Now the town just caters to Taiwanese tourists. There is an old train on display there and a small museum set up around it. The town has an old-time station feel, with traditional tin lunch-boxes. There are some nice trails around there too.
A national museum is coming, but not until 2024 