About the development history of Yuanlin Sugar Railways
Text/Teacher Mei-tu Chiu
Yuanlin Township, originally known as Linzi Street, became a village in 1730 and a street in 1751. It has been the largest town in Taiwan since the ancient times, where there are three kinds of railways gather, including Yuanlin Post of Taiwan Railways established in 1905, Sugar Railway Yuanlin Station built in 1919 and Yuanlin Light Station set in 1920, so it enjoyed a convenient north-south traffic and became the administrative and economic center of Yuanlin Prefecture (now Yuanlin Township, Xihu Township, Tianzhong Township, Dacun Township, Puyan Township, Puxin Township, Yongjing Township, Shetou Township, Ershui Township), and its importance still exists till now.
Establishment of Sugar Railway Yuanlin Station in 1919
It was said that Koo Hsien-jung established Dahe Sugar Corp. in 1919, opening a new chapter of Taiwan Sugar Railway, there were 11 stations in Yuanlin-Lugang Railway, including Yuanlin, Pohsin, Erchongpu, Wucuo, Gongchangchian, Xihu, Dingliao, Puyan, Waichung, Fanshe, Lukang etc., in which Yuanlin Sugar Railway had a total length of 650m, the parallel lines and straight lines in the south of Yuanlu Rd. today run from Yuanquan Rd. in the south to the north via Juguang Rd. and Sanyi Rd., and the arc section was in the triangle area formed by Sanyi Rd., Yuanlu Rd., Zhongshan Rd. The railways crossed Yuanlu Rd. to the northeast from Sanyi Section to lead to the west of Yuanlin Train Station platform.
Joint construction of three railways
Taiwan Sugar Yuanlin Station was established in the west of Taiwan Railway Yuanlin Station platform in 1919, dominated by the transportation of sugarcane and other raw materials produced in Xihu Sugar Refinery, with the passenger transportation as the auxiliary. The Sugar Railway Yuanlin Station was of the joint construction of three rails, together with the three-rail way design of gauge 762mm and 1067mm, becoming the Taiwan railway characteristics of “leading line of official line”.
Temporary prosperity of two stations
In order to relieve the prosperous passenger and cargo transportation in Yuanlin Station, South Yuanlin Station was added at the crossing in 1933, when the roaring train parked in South Yuanlin Station, it would add water or coal fuel under a one floor high water crane (iron water pipe) not far away from the station office, a large banyan near the water crane provided coolness, and a logo of “transportation” was written on the wall of the house, which was the logo of Taiwan Railway Transportation Co., Ltd. in front of Yuanlin Station.
The crossing in the west of Taiwan Sugar South Yuanlin Station was extraordinarily lively, and there was a light station! Later because of reduction of business, the passenger transportation of Xihu Line of Yuanlin Sugar Railways was stopped, and the lively scene at the crossing of Yuanlin Station became depressed gradually.
Waiting to be activated
Yuanlin Sugar Railway facilities have been wasted for many years, and they were once revived during the modification of bicycle lane in 2008. But due to the opening of 184ha circum-town road recently, the sugar refinery railway has been cut off, and because of many years’ elevated railway project, some old houses, rails, warehouse and plants etc. surrounding the sugar railways have been demolished, and the early impression to sugar railway have been seriously damaged. The local people hope that the devastated Yuanlin Railways can be concerned and activated.