Railway Undergrounding in Neili, Taoyuan Causes Heavy Congestion; Governments Respond
The railway undergrounding project in the Neili section of Taoyuan caused severe traffic congestion at level crossings due to train speed limits. Taoyuan City and the Railway Bureau agreed on emergency measures, including accelerating speed restoration and adjusting signals.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 28, 2026 at 18:13
- 🔍 Collected: April 28, 2026 at 18:32 (18 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 28, 2026 at 20:13 (1h 40m after Collected)
(Taoyuan, April 28, CNA) The Taiwan Railway section in Neili, Taoyuan, has seen severe traffic congestion at surrounding level crossings this week due to speed limits imposed during the Ministry of Transportation's railway undergrounding project. Taoyuan City Government coordinated with the Railway Bureau today to accelerate the return to normal train speeds and adjust traffic signals.
The Railway Bureau and Taiwan Railway Company are promoting the Taoyuan urban area railway undergrounding project. Late on the 25th, temporary track switching work was carried out, and it was enabled on the morning of the 26th. During the transition, Neili Station adjusted its two platforms to one island platform for both northbound and southbound trains.
Due to safety regulations following track switching, trains must maintain a slow speed limit for 44 days (40 km/h for the first 8 days and 60 km/h for the next 6 days). This has significantly lengthened the time trains take to pass level crossings. Yesterday, the first working day since the switch, peak hours saw crowded platforms and massive traffic jams at surrounding level crossings, with nine crossings from Jiadong to Zhongyi-li affected.
Citizens complained that they waited for seven trains to pass without being able to cross, and passengers were frustrated by delays of nearly 30 minutes. Following negotiations, the city government announced that the East Main Line and the West Main Line south of Neili Station will return to normal speeds early on May 8. However, the section between Yuandong Road and Neili Station will maintain slow speeds until June 7 due to ongoing rail replacement and switch installation.
Regarding signal control, after an on-site inspection of Xingren Road crossing, it was found that the traffic light timing had errors. Measures will be taken to extend the green light for right turns from Xingren Road onto Zhonghua Road by 10 seconds during peak hours. Starting tomorrow, the Railway Bureau will deploy additional traffic control personnel at Yuandong, Xingren, Neili South, and Zili crossings, and the city police will increase their presence at major intersections. The police suggest that drivers take alternative routes like Wenzhong Road or international roads to avoid the most congested areas.
The Railway Bureau and Taiwan Railway Company are promoting the Taoyuan urban area railway undergrounding project. Late on the 25th, temporary track switching work was carried out, and it was enabled on the morning of the 26th. During the transition, Neili Station adjusted its two platforms to one island platform for both northbound and southbound trains.
Due to safety regulations following track switching, trains must maintain a slow speed limit for 44 days (40 km/h for the first 8 days and 60 km/h for the next 6 days). This has significantly lengthened the time trains take to pass level crossings. Yesterday, the first working day since the switch, peak hours saw crowded platforms and massive traffic jams at surrounding level crossings, with nine crossings from Jiadong to Zhongyi-li affected.
Citizens complained that they waited for seven trains to pass without being able to cross, and passengers were frustrated by delays of nearly 30 minutes. Following negotiations, the city government announced that the East Main Line and the West Main Line south of Neili Station will return to normal speeds early on May 8. However, the section between Yuandong Road and Neili Station will maintain slow speeds until June 7 due to ongoing rail replacement and switch installation.
Regarding signal control, after an on-site inspection of Xingren Road crossing, it was found that the traffic light timing had errors. Measures will be taken to extend the green light for right turns from Xingren Road onto Zhonghua Road by 10 seconds during peak hours. Starting tomorrow, the Railway Bureau will deploy additional traffic control personnel at Yuandong, Xingren, Neili South, and Zili crossings, and the city police will increase their presence at major intersections. The police suggest that drivers take alternative routes like Wenzhong Road or international roads to avoid the most congested areas.