Proposal to extend HSR to Yilan passes environmental impact assessment

Taipei, Aug. 20 (CNA) The Ministry of Environment (MOENV) approved the environmental impact assessment report on extending the high-speed rail (HSR) to Yilan County after a review meeting on Wednesday, bringing the project a step closer.

The new route is expected to start from Nangang and pass through New Taipei City's Xizhi, Pingxi, Shuangxi and Gongliao districts before reaching Toucheng Township in Yilan, stopping at a planned new station southeast of Yilan County hall.

A new maintenance depot will also be constructed further south, making the new route 60.6 kilometers in length, with 59.6km of newly constructed track connecting to 1km of preexisting track beyond HSR Nangang Station, according to the Railway Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC).

Yang Cheng-chun (楊正君), head of the Railway Bureau, explained in an interview after the Wednesday meeting that any major construction project in Taiwan is required to submit a comprehensive planning report and pass a two-stage environmental impact assessment (EIA).

However, the NT$350 billion (US$10.8 billion) project still requires Executive Yuan approval before it can start, said Yang.

If the project is approved by the end of 2025, it will take two more years to finalize design details before outsourcing and starting construction work, he added.

The project is set to be finished 11 years after approval, by 2036, Yang said.

The extension is necessary as the existing transport corridors connecting Taipei and Yilan -- including National Freeway No. 5, Provincial Highways No. 2 and No. 9, and the Taiwan Railways (TR) line -- are already operating beyond capacity, the MOTC explained.

In addition, extreme weather and earthquakes in recent years have frequently disrupted road and rail links to eastern Taiwan, raising concerns over safety and reliability, it said.

By allowing passengers to transfer from the new HSR Yilan Station to TR trains bound for Hualien and Taitung, the project is expected to significantly boost capacity and strengthen the resilience of eastern Taiwan's transport system, according to the Railway Bureau.

Once operational, travel time between Taipei and Yilan could be cut to 28 minutes, the bureau said.

The project has nevertheless sparked debate, with critics questioning the practicality of integrating TR services and the new HSR line, citing potential scheduling conflicts, the high cost of upgrading existing infrastructure, and the risk of diverting revenue away from TR.