CHEAPER TRAVEL:
The early-bird tickets, which are mostly for high-speed trains in off-peak hours, can be purchased at discounts of 10, 20 and 35 percent
By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
Starting on Dec.1, high-speed rail passengers buying non-reserved seats at early-bird rates must also enter their personal ID or passport number when booking and show their ID card or other identification documents when boarding, Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) said yesterday.
Travelers who are booking tickets with early-bird rates for trains leaving on Dec. 1 can begin making reservations on Friday, which are subject to the new policy, the high-speed rail operator said.
The company said that the purpose of adopting a real-name system to sell early-bird tickets is to ensure that all people can buy tickets fairly.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp
For verification purposes, passengers who purchase tickets at early-bird rates must present the original copy of their ID card that matches the ID shown on the ticket when boarding trains, the company said.
Only the last five digits of the ID or passport number would be printed on the ticket, it added.
Should passengers fail to produce valid identification documents when boarding, they would be viewed as boarding trains without tickets and would be asked to pay a full fare for the trip and a 50 percent penalty fee would be charged, the company said.
Should passengers lose their early-bird ticket before departure, they can be issued a new ticket by presenting their ID card at high-speed rail stations, the company said. However, each passenger can only get a new ticket once and would be charged a NT$30 processing fee, it said.
Once the real-name system is implemented, early-bird tickets could only be booked through the company’s Web site, the T-EX app and convenience store chains working with the high-speed rail operator, the company said.
Passengers can pick up their tickets through the T-EX app, at convenience stores and high-speed rail stations, it added.
Early-bird tickets, which are mostly for trains in off-peak hours, can be purchased at discounts of 10 percent, 20 percent and 35 percent, the company said.
Passengers can book tickets as early as 29 days before traveling, it said.
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