Taipei, Nov. 8 (CNA) A British railway expert advised Taiwan to step up investment in the railway industry and regain public confidence for the most environmentally friendly form of travel.
"It's good for the people of Taiwan, the economy, and the environment -- the three pillars of railway development," said Len Porter, chief executive of Rail Safety and Standards Board Limited (RSSB), in an interview Wednesday with the CNA. The interview was held on the eve of a seminar entitled "Managing the Safety of Railway Assets and People," to be held Nov. 9 in Taipei.
Overall, the railways are far more environmentally friendly than any other form of transport except for bicycles, Porter said, adding that Taiwan's government should invest more in railway development at this key juncture -- when environmental and energy issues have become the focus of global concern.
Taiwan should be devoting itself to engaging in more railway activities such as establishing railway lines for mass-rapid transportation (MRT) in Taipei, Kaohsiung and Taichung, and a high-speed railway, said Jeremy Candfield, director-general of the U.K. Railway Industry Association.
In fact, increased railway investment was a key factor that helped London win the bid to host the 2012 Olympics, Candfield noted.
The British railway industry, like Taiwan's, had also taken "hits" in the mid 1990s, experiencing a stable decline in the number of railway passengers, he said.
The industry embarked upon a major restructuring plan after a major railway accident in 1999, when the RSSB was established, Porter said.
The industry body spent a lot of time identifying the principle risks in the infrastructure, Porter said, and tried to reduce those risks by improving maintenance, sorting out responsibility and accountability, producing and providing as much information as possible to regain the confidence of British citizens.
The efforts have paid dividends, he said; in three of the last five years there has been no single passenger killed or injured in the U.K.
"You can never say there is no risk [in railway transportation]. And you can never say a railway is totally safe," Porter said.
However, by reducing risks in the network, railway transportation can still become an important part of everyone's daily life -- even in Taiwan, he said.