Railway ticket prices to rise in June NO CHANGE: While those who take short-distance train rides would be the most affected, they mostly use TPASS and therefore their fares would not increase
Staff writer, with CNA
Taiwan Railway Corp (TRC) is set to raise ticket prices for the first time in 30 years in late June, the acting chairman of the state-owned company said yesterday.
At a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee meeting, TRC acting chairman Wu Sheng-yuan (伍勝園) confirmed the averagefare increase of 26.8 percent has been reviewed by the Executive Yuan and would take effect on June 23, although the company has not yet formallyannounced the new prices.
The corporationis required toannounce the fare changes at least one month before they take effect.
Passengers line up to board a train at Taipei Railway Station in an undated photograph. Photo courtesy of Taiwan Railway Corp
According to data previously released by TRC, the rate of the increase would taper off with distance traveled, meaning long-distance trips would see relatively smaller farehikes.
英文小貼士
1 raise ticket prices 調漲票價
TRC is set to raise ticket prices for the first time in 30 years.（台鐵預計 30 年來首次調漲票價。）
2 take effect生效；開始實施
The fare increase would take effect on June 23.（票價調整將於 6 月 23 日生效。）
3 taper off（程度）逐漸減弱 / 趨緩
The rate of the increase would taper off with distance traveled.（隨著旅程距離的增加，票價漲幅將逐漸減少。）
For example, the fare for a Tze-Chiang express train from Taipei to Kaohsiung is to increase from NT$824 to NT$975 (US$24.93 to US$29.50) — an 18.33 percentrise — while a ticket on the same train between Taipei to Taichung will rise 33.6 percent from NT$375 to NT$501.
Passengers enrolled in the TPASS program would not see any changes to pricing and would continue to enjoy unlimited rides, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said.
Wu said that while those who take short-distance train rides would be the most affected, those people mostly use TPASS and therefore their fares would not increase.
In addition, the fare from Taipei to New Taipei City’s Banciao District (板橋) would only increase by NT$7, still leaving it cheaper than the MRT or public buses, he said.
The fareadjustment was approved by the company’s board of directors in early February in a bid to reduce the company’s losses.
The firm last year recorded a deficit ofNT$13.79 billion, including about NT$10.1 billion from railway operations.
The new fares are expected to boost the company’s annualrevenue by more than NT$4 billion.
Meanwhile, high-speed rail fares are to remain the same as traffic volumes and revenue are continuing to increase, Wu said.
Two years after new stock is purchased and costs increase would be a more appropriate time to discuss pricing adjustments for the high-speed rail, he said.
英文小貼士
5 in a bid to 為了達成（某目標）
The fareadjustment was approved in a bid to reduce the company’s losses.（這次票價調整是為了減少公司的虧損。）
6 record a deficit錄得虧損 ＊「deficit」指財務虧損，「record」此處為動詞，表示「記錄」。
The firm recorded a deficit ofNT$13.79 billion last year.（該公司去年錄得新台幣 137.9 億元的虧損。）
7 annualrevenue年度營收 ＊「revenue」是會計與商業報導常見詞，指收入或營收。
The new fares are expected to boost the company’s annualrevenue.（新的票價預期將提升公司的年度營收。）
8 remain the same 維持不變
High-speed rail fares are to remain the same.（高鐵票價將維持不變。）
9 in a more appropriate time 在更適當的時機
It would be a more appropriate time to discuss pricing adjustments.（未來在更適當的時機再討論票價調整會比較妥當。）
10 board of directors 董事會 ＊指公司內部最高決策單位，是商業報導中常出現的重要名詞。
The fareadjustment was approved by the company’s board of directors.（這次票價調整已由公司董事會通過。）
【用興趣學英文。把英文變興趣】Turn English into your interest!!
✔ 僅支援線上刷卡，付款成功後立即開通功能權限。恕不提供退貨服務，請務必確認您已了解訂閱制服務後再進行訂購。
✔ 結帳可享「熊贈點 (查詢)」或「折價券(查詢)」折抵二擇一。
✔ 以低於 3 折加購嚴選好書。
內有折扣碼彩蛋，請繼續看下去，不然真的會後悔！）
