Free guided tours of rebuilt Kaohsiung Main Station to be offered

Kaohsiung, Dec. 5 (CNA) Free guided tours of the rebuilt Taiwan Railway Corp. (TRC) Kaohsiung Main Station will be provided to members of the public on Dec. 28-29, to celebrate the completion of work by the end of the year, according to the Railway Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications.

In a Facebook post, the bureau said a total of eight free guided tours, each with a maximum of 20 participants, will be given on those two days. The tours will provide a first look at the rebuilt station's air conditioning, ventilating, and water and electricity pipeline systems to which the public have never previously been given access.

Bookings for the visits will begin at 10 a.m., Dec. 14, details of which will be made public on the bureau's Facebook fan page, with a requirement that children aged 12 and under must be accompanied by a parent who has also signed up for a tour, it said.

During the 40-50 minute tour, visitors will be able to enter the underground central control room, from where tunnel smoke control and escape routes are monitored, as well as the signal system operating room and exit passageways at the end of the platforms, according to the bureau.

Kaohsiung Main Station is a dual-use railway and metro station in Sanmin District, serving TRC and Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp.