Taipei Railway Workshop Explained

Taipei Railway Workshop
Native Name:臺北機廠
Native Name Lang:zh
Former Names:Train Hospital
Building Type:Former workshop
Location:Xinyi, Taipei, Taiwan
Coordinates:25.0461°N 121.5634°W
Completion Date:30 October 1935
Destruction Date:-->
Grounds Area:16.82 hectares
Unit Count:-->

The Taipei Railway Workshop was the largest railway workshop of the Taiwan Railways Administration. For decades it manufactured and maintained thousands of railway vehicles. The workshop was established in 1935 to replace the original workshop, which had become inadequate. It was the largest railway workshop ever built in Taiwan. The Governor-General of Taiwan recognized its establishment as a celebration of the Empire of Japan's rule of Taiwan for 40 years.[1]

The 16.82-hectare site on Civic Boulevard was the largest and oldest kind on the island. It closed in 2012. It was constructed in 1930 and featured distinctive structures such as a 168-meter-long train assembly shed.[2] The operation was transferred to TRA Fugang Vehicle Depot (Chinese: Chinese: '''臺鐵富岡基地''').[3] The workshop was recognized as an "official national historic site" in 2015. The government of Taiwan says it is planning to transform the facility into a railway museum.[4]

In popular culture

The Taipei Railway Workshop was featured in the 2013 Jay Chou film The Rooftop and in the 2014 Luc Besson film Lucy.

Transportation

The Taipei Railway Workshop is accessible within walking distance northeast from Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall Station or south from Nanjing Sanmin Station of the Taipei Metro.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Restoration work starts on heritage railway workshop bathhouse - Focus Taiwan.
  2. News: Taipei Railway Workshop added to heritage list. Taiwan Today. March 16, 2015.
  3. Web site: 關於北廠-反對臺北機廠成為北美二館. About North Plant - against Taipei factory become the second museum in North America. https://web.archive.org/web/20150518074409/http://tpeworkshop.railway.tw/archives/259. May 18, 2015. December 15, 2013.
  4. News: Lii Wen . Lii . Wen . Shan . Shelley . Workshop named historical site . 23 September 2018 . Taipei Times . 16 March 2015.