Ximen Station

The Taipei Metro Ximen Station is located between the Zhongzheng and Wanhua districts in Taipei City, Taiwan. It is a transfer station on the Nangang Line, Banqiao Line, and Xiaonanmen Line. It will become a terminus for the Xindian Line before opening for traffic on the Songshan Line in 2013.^[2]

The station is named for the old west gate of the city, whose location is roughly where the current station is located.

Station overview

The station is a three-level,^[3] underground structure with two island platforms and six exits.^[4] The two platforms are stacked, thus allowing for cross-platform interchange when the Songshan Line begins service. Washrooms are inside the entrance area. In November 2010, the daily ridership at Ximen Station was 112,000,^[5] making it the fourth busiest station on the network, just behind Taipei Main Station, Taipei City Hall and Zhongxiao Fuxing Station.

It is situated under Zhonghua Road, at the intersection of Chengdu Road, Hengyang Road, and Baoqing Road. The station is also connected to the Ximen Underground Mall (not yet open for revenue service but allowed for passageway).

Exit 6 is heavily used by young people accessing the Ximending shopping area. The exit opening is set at the top of the pedestrian zone, although there is still vehicular traffic in that area. The station is often crowded on weekends, especially in the afternoon.

History

TRA Station

• During Japanese rule, the station was called "Shinkichō" (新起町) Field. It was specifically for refueling and its location is roughly where the current station is today.
• After the war during post-war rebuilding, the station's name was changed to the current "Ximen Station". However, the station location had disappeared due to illegal construction, so the station could not be reconstructed. Since the movement of railroads in the city underground, the station has since become an emergency station.

Ximen Station used to be a station on the TRA Western Line. However, now the underground area is only used as an emergency station and not open for revenue service.

Taipei Metro Station

• December 24, 1999: Nangang Line platforms 1 and 3 open with the opening of the Taipei City Hall to Longshan Temple segment.
• August 31, 2000: Xiaonanmen Line platforms 2 and 4 open with the opening of the Ximen to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall segment.
• September 8, 2009: Service was temporarily disrupted when a person jumped into the Nangang Line tracks at 5:46 PM.^[6]

In the past, plans for the Taoyuan Airport MRT had this station as a terminus. However, the route has since been altered and the station is no longer on the planned route.

Station layout

Note: The station is currently a terminus for the Xiaonanmen Line. Thus, only one platform for that line (either Platform 2 or 4) is open for revenue service at any given time; platform usage alternates to ensure equal usage. When the Songshan Line opens in 2013, both platforms will become operational to accommodate northbound traffic.

Exits

• Exit 1: Intersection of Hanzhong St. and Chengdu Rd.
• Exit 2: Zhonghua Rd. Sec. 1
• Exit 3: Baoqing Rd.
• Exit 4: Hengyang Rd.
• Exit 5: Intersection of Zhonghua Rd. Sec. 1 and Xiushan St.
• Exit 6: Intersection of Hanzhong St. and Chengdu Rd.

Around the station

• Ximending Pedestrian Zone
• BoAi Road Camera Shops
• Far Eastern Department Store FE21 (Baoqing Branch)
• Eslite 116
• Executive Yuan, Environmental Agency
• Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School (Heping Branch)
• Taipei City Police Station
• Taipei Library (Ximen Smart Library)
• Red House Theater
• Taipei Zhongshan Hall
• National Taipei College of Nursing.^[7]
• Ximen Elementary School

References