TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Transportation Minister Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) said Thursday that he will request Taiwan Railway to add extra trains from Taichung’s Fengyuan to Taipei.

Taiwan Railway operates six direct and semi-direct trains daily between Fengyuan and Taipei. Two additional trains will be added on weekends, per CNA.

Chen visited Fengyuan Station on Thursday to inspect its operations. Legislative Deputy Speaker Johnny Chiang (江啟臣), along with Legislators Yu Hao (游顥), Lo Ting-wei (羅廷瑋) , and Ho Hsin-chun (何欣純), also attended.

Chen said that with the Taichung MRT Red Line starting at Fengyuan Station, it is expected to become a key transportation hub for north Taichung. Chiang said reducing the travel time from Fengyuan to Taipei to within 100 minutes could attract more passengers to Taiwan Railway.

Chiang said Taiwan Railway and Taiwan High Speed Rail should collaborate further to manage passenger flows. He emphasized the need for Taiwan Railway to increase the number of direct trains to Banqiao and Taipei to ease THSR's load, per Yahoo News. 

The THSR Taichung Station, integrated with the Taichung MRT and Taiwan Railway’s Xinwuri Station, often experiences long passenger queues on weekends.

Chen added that Fengyuan Station has been experiencing sewer odors. Taichung City Government will connect the station's wastewater pit to the city's sewer system, which is expected to resolve the issue.