Riding the Rails: Taiwan's High-Speed Rail and Metro Systems
Taiwan's High Speed Rail links the island's west coast in under two hours, while modern metro systems move millions in its cities. A guide to getting around Taiwan.
Getting around Taiwan is remarkably easy, thanks to a public transport network that ranks among Asia's most efficient. At its heart is the Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR), a bullet-train line running down the densely populated west coast, complemented by metro systems in the major cities and a comprehensive network of conventional trains and buses.
Opened in 2007, the High Speed Rail connects Taipei in the north with Kaohsiung in the south — a journey of around 350 kilometres — in as little as about 90 minutes to two hours. Built using Japanese Shinkansen technology, the line transformed domestic travel, effectively turning the western corridor into a single commuter belt and drawing the island's cities closer together. Trains run frequently and reliably, and the service has carried hundreds of millions of passengers.
In the cities, metro systems provide the backbone of daily commuting. The Taipei Metro (MRT), opened in the late 1990s, is renowned for its cleanliness, punctuality and orderly etiquette — eating and drinking are prohibited in stations and trains, and passengers famously queue in marked lines and keep escalators clear. Kaohsiung, Taoyuan and Taichung have their own growing metro networks, extending rapid transit across the island.
Tying the whole system together is the contactless smart card, most notably the EasyCard, which can be used across metros, buses, the conventional railway, some High Speed Rail bookings, public bicycles and even purchases at convenience stores. A single tap-in, tap-out card lets a traveller move seamlessly between modes of transport, a level of integration many larger countries still aspire to.
Public bike-sharing complements the rail network, with the widely used YouBike system offering docked bicycles near stations and throughout the cities. Combined with pedestrian-friendly districts and dense bus routes, this makes car-free travel genuinely practical for both residents and visitors.
For international travellers, the takeaway is simple: Taiwan can be explored comfortably without a car. A tourist can breakfast in Taipei, take the High Speed Rail south for lunch in Tainan or Kaohsiung, and return the same evening. This connectivity is not just a convenience but a driver of the island's economy and social life, knitting together a compact, mountainous island into one accessible whole.