The Lunar New Year holidays are almost over, and Taiwanese people are busy traveling home ahead of the first day back at work on Wednesday. Amid this rush of travelers, some Taiwan Railways trains have been found carrying more passengers than are allowed.
It is obvious that the train seen in this footage is carrying more people than it’s supposed to be. Over the Lunar New Year holidays, standing room on Taiwan Railways trains has been capped at 120 people per train. That means only 15 people are permitted to buy cheaper standing tickets per car.
Railway management says the reason for this overcrowding is that some people have been violating rules by hopping on the trains using their smartcards, used for taking Taipei’s Metro and other forms of public transportation. The management says that anyone found not to have purchased standing tickets will be charged an extra 50 percent or removed from the train immediately.
Railways management says that the company will also increase train services on the last day of the holiday if necessary in order to prevent crowding in line with epidemic prevention measures.