The Evolution Of The Xindian Transport Hub, 1895-1965

The Evolution of the Xindian Transport Hub, 1895-1965:

Spatial Development of Taiwan Professor Liu Xiao Lan

National Chengchi University International Master’s Program in Asia-Pacific Studies

Timothy Hogan 97924012 November 4, 2009

The growth of Xindian, a city of approximately 290,000 inhabitants, located in Taipei County and bordering Taipei City, has been closely tied to the development of its transport system. Today, most residents of Taipei City know Xindian as the terminus of the Xindian to Tamsui line of the MRT, while residents of Xindian are certainly aware that the symbol of Xindian is the historic suspension bridge crossing the Xindian River. Since the end of the nineteenth century, the transport system in Xindian has undergone several major transformations. Partly this has been due to the impact of technological progress on transportation, but mainly it is a result of the change in the economic activities occurring in Xindian and the city’s proximity to Taipei. This paper will offer a brief outline of the evolution of Xindian’s transport system from the late Qing era, through the Japanese colonia era, up to the time of rapid industrialization in the 1960s, highlighting economic development and technological progress. While many significant changes have taken place since the 1960s, this paper will concern itself with this period in order to focus attention on how the early transport system was transformed as Xindian’s economy shifted from agriculture to mining and timber, then on to mixed light industry and commercial, and finally to a service orientation, with particular attention to the city’s role as a residential suburb of Taipei City. Xindian’s transport system has been based on a wide variety of transport modes, and these can be classified according to their source of power. Table 1 lists fourteen different transport modes and indicates the economic activity that predominated when these modes were used for economic activity. It is clear from the table that some modes only had relevance during specific stages of economic activity, such as river boats and ox carts when Taiwan’s economy was predominantly agricultural, while the railroad played a role in both Taiwan’s agricultural and

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industrial stages of development, and buses, automobiles, taxis, and motorcycles played a role during the industrial age and continue to be relevant as service industries predominate. Also evident is the fact that the transport of passengers has become the main focus of transport development, reflecting Xindian’s role as a commercial services center and residential suburb for people employed in Taipei City and in other parts of Taipei County. Transport mode

Power source

Boat Foot Push car Bicycle Cart Railroad Railroad Truck Bus Truck Automobile Motorcycle Taxi MRT

Wind / current Human

Animal Steam Diesel

Gasoline

Electricity

Cargo Goods People X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

Major economic activity Agriculture Industry Service X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

Table 1: Transport Modes in Xindian and Economic Activity At the nineteenth century, Xindian was the commercial center for an agricultural region in the southern part of the Taipei Basin. The economy of the area was dependent on rice and tea farming and harvesting the timber on the nearby foothills. Transport over land within the area was difficult and best accomplished by ox drawn cart, but Xindian’s location along a major river meant that river boats could be used to transport goods and passengers downstream to Taipei. While Xindian had an early irrigation system that provided water to a wide area of farmland stretching north to Taipei, its transport system was not similarly blessed. Located away from the railroad line that Liu Ming-chuan had constructed between Jilong and Xinzhu, Xindian developed more slowly than more favorably located regions. Plus, to the 3

south of Xindian lay mountains inhabited by the Atayal people, one of Taiwan’s indigenous groups, so there was little incentive nor ability to push transport past the town. Commercial development during this period was centered near the riverside where the boats were loaded and unloaded. Shops catering to the rural residents of the area sold goods that farming families were not able to make for themselves. With the beginning of the Japanese colonial period in 1895, Xindian underwent a shift in terms of its land use and economic activity. Agriculture remained important on the flatlands between Xindian and Taipei, but lumber and mining began to play a more important role in the district as Japanese investors formed companies to exploit the resources in the mountains. Transport into the mountainous regions to Xindian’s south was accomplished via narrow gauge push car rail lines. These linked Xindian to nearby lumber, tea, and mining districts such as Guishan and Pinglin.. Such lines were relatively inexpensive to build and operate but effectively carried small loads reliably. Later, a branch railway was built connecting Xindian to the trunk line that passed through Taipei. This branch railway carried lumber, coal, and agricultural products to the market in Taipei. From there it could be transported by rail to Keelung and then onto ships for transport to Japan. A roadway south of Xindian was built to allow for the construction of Taiwan’s first hydroelectric generating station, located along the river a few kilometers south of Xindian. Roads were often constructed on the beds laid down for the push cars or followed the same routes up the river valleys into the mountains. Commercial and residential development during this period took place in the areas surrounding the railroad stations. Shops and markets lined the narrow lanes near the station, and farm fields filled the spaces between clusters of houses and villages.

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During World War II, much of the transport infrastructure was destroyed by American bombing. In the 1950s, roads, bridges, and railways were rebuilt, including the rail line to Xindian. The economic activity in Xindian at that time was a mixture of agriculture, light industry, lumber and coal mining, and commerce. With the train in operation, agriculture goods could be shipped to market, raw materials could reach factories, and finished goods could be shipped to markets in the city. Located relatively close to Taipei, Xindian offered low land prices and labor surplus to factories willing to establish themselves in the area. The number of roadways increased, but they were narrow and of poor quality, so the train remained the dominant transport link with Taipei City. The lumber industry continued to operate in the mountains to the south of the town, but its production was tapering off as valuable timber in easily accessible forested areas was depleted. The population of Xindian was growing as laborers moved to the area to take advantage of job opportunities. Apartment blocks for workers were built near the train stations and along the major roads. By 1965, Xindian was not growing into a industrial city but one of mixed residential and commercial use. The rail line to Taipei was removed and replaced with modern Beixin Road, connecting with Roosevelt Road in Taipei City. Along this new road ran buses to carry workers into and out of the city. The former train station at the Xindian terminus of the railway, near the Qing-era river port, was turned into a bus station, and buses making the journey into Taipei City left the station every hour. While factories continued to operate on the edge of Xindian, the former rice fields along Beixin Road were given over to the construction of apartment blocks and commercial buildings. Unlike in Taipei City, the grid pattern of streets was not employed with any regularity, so narrow lanes and alleys branched off the main roads.

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Few people owned private automobiles at the time, so the lack of parking was not immediately a problem, but in the years to come it would become a major headache for Xindian’s residents. At that time, motorcycles were gaining in popularity as a preferred mode of private transport. Not only did they use little gasoline, but they could carry an entire family when necessary and be parked almost anywhere. Taiwan developed rapidly during the twentieth century, and even Xindian saw a dramatic transformation. It went from a market town surrounded by rice and tea farms on one side and forested mountains on the other, to a major population center of Taipei County with thriving commercial development and remnants of its industrial and agricultural history. In the years after 1965, Xindian would see its remaining farm land and surrounding hillsides covered in apartment buildings as an increasing number of people from southern Taiwan moved northward to take advantage of job opportunities and former residents of Taipei City escaped the rising land prices there. This rapid inward migration put strains on Xindian’s transport system, particularly the link to Taipei, since there was only one road directly into the city. This feature would remain a bottleneck for further growth in Xindian, and would only be addressed in the 1980s when an elevated expressway to Taipei was constructed along the river. Like the railroad and the road system, the expressway opened up new land for development. It did not, however, offer a long lasting solution to the bottleneck on transport from Xindian to Taipei. With the rising population in Xindian, and the rapidly increasing number of cars being driven by commuters into the city, the expressway’s capacity was soon reached, and traffic jams became a serious problem, one that would only be alleviated with the opening of the Xindian MRT Line in the twenty-first century.

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