TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – A proposal to have rapid trains run along Taiwan’s east coast at speeds of up to 160 kph is unrealistic for safety reasons, Transportation Minister Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) said Wednesday.

To promote tourism and to help residents of relatively isolated communities in the mountainous counties of Hualien and Taitung, past governments promoted a plan to allow for more rapid rail travel. The plan was designated as “high speed rail in the west, rapid rail in the east,” per CNA.

The idea was to enable passengers to travel around the island by train in six hours. Trips between Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taitung, Hualien, and back to Taipei would each take 90 minutes.

However, Chen said that following research, the proposals by previous premiers and transportation ministers had proven unrealistic, as a maximum speed of 160 kph on the east coast was not safe. Rail officials said that a study conducted from 2020 to 2023 showed the project would require several adjustments.

The upgrading of the signaling system and changes to railroad crossings were just two aspects requiring careful consideration before such a project could go ahead, according to transportation officials. Instead, the priority would be on the reinforcement of bridges and the redrawing of routes.