Taiwan Launches High-Speed Rail Service

"Taiwan's long-delayed high-speed rail system debuted Friday, its 12-car caravan of sleek orange and white coaches gliding out of a suburban Taipei station right on time at 7 a.m."

"Twenty years in the making, the $15 billion system represents a colossal effort to provide a state-of-the-art, energy-efficient and environmentally friendly transport option for Taiwan's 23 million people.

Friday's initial service, which stopped in the central city of Taichung, made the 216-mile journey to the southern city of Kaohsiung in the scheduled time of 90 minutes - two-and-a-half hours faster than the usual train service on that route."