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Kaohsiung’s long‑planned Yellow Line metro has taken a significant step forward, with rail manufacturer Stadler advancing work on its first metro train project in Asia for the southern Taiwanese port city.
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Landmark Contract Positions Stadler on Taiwan’s Yellow Line
Publicly available information shows that Kaohsiung’s Yellow Line is being delivered through an electrical and mechanical turnkey contract awarded to a consortium led by Siemens Mobility, with Singapore’s ST Engineering and Switzerland‑based Stadler Rail as key partners. The agreement covers trains, signaling, power supply, communications, platform screen doors and depot systems for the 22.8‑kilometer rapid transit corridor.
Stadler’s role involves supplying 25 three‑car metro trains that will operate at the highest level of automation, known as Grade of Automation 4, or GoA4. Company disclosures describe the Kaohsiung order as its first metro rolling‑stock project in Asia, underscoring the strategic importance of the contract for Stadler’s expansion into the region.
The Kaohsiung Yellow Line order is highlighted in Stadler’s corporate reports as a landmark reference for its METRO platform. The fleet will be fully driverless, with onboard systems designed to integrate tightly with Siemens’ communications‑based train control solution across the entire line.
The consortium structure also reflects Taiwan’s preference for turnkey delivery on complex urban rail projects, bundling trains, depot, signaling and power into a single package aimed at reducing interface risks and accelerating commissioning.
Driverless Metro to Form a Second Ring Around Kaohsiung
According to city and project documentation, the Yellow Line will run roughly 22.9 kilometers from Niaosong in the east through core districts including Sanmin, Lingya, Sinsing, Fongshan and Cianjhen, serving 23 stations and a depot along the route. The line is planned to intersect with the existing Red and Orange heavy metro lines, the circular light rail and Taiwan Railways, creating a high‑capacity transfer spine across the metropolitan area.
Planning papers describe the Yellow Line and fully looped light rail as forming a “dual‑ring” backbone around Kaohsiung. The new metro corridor is expected to ease congestion on radial routes and shorten cross‑town journeys by connecting residential districts, administrative centers and commercial hubs without requiring detours through the city’s original metro core.
Local government reports indicate that the Yellow Line has moved beyond feasibility studies into detailed design and construction staging, with urban planning processes for several station areas under way. The aim is to coordinate station construction with surrounding zoning, enabling higher‑density, transit‑oriented development around key hubs.
Once in service, the driverless Yellow Line is projected in public estimates to significantly lift overall Kaohsiung Metro ridership, complementing the Red and Orange lines that opened in 2008 and the light rail loop that reached full‑circle operation in 2024.
From Tender Awards to Construction and Systems Delivery
Kaohsiung’s municipal records show that the Yellow Line’s electrical and mechanical and depot package, known as tender YM01, completed bidding evaluation in August 2022, with the Siemens‑ST Engineering‑Stadler team identified as the most favorable tenderer. Subsequent contract steps have proceeded alongside staggered awards for civil engineering and track works packages.
Separate notices from regional contractors and city agencies document the phased award of major civil packages labeled YC01 and YC02, as well as track works and remaining design contracts. By mid‑2024, council proceedings cited by local media indicated that all principal civil, track and systems contracts for the line had been let, with only a final design package still in procurement.
Official project briefs presented in English and Chinese note that the Yellow Line is currently in the detailed design and site‑preparation stage, with construction activities ramping up at multiple work fronts. These preparations include utility relocation, temporary traffic management and initial structural works at several planned station sites.
While detailed manufacturing and delivery schedules for the Stadler fleet have not been publicly disclosed, turnkey documentation suggests that rolling‑stock production will be sequenced to align with testing of the line’s CBTC signaling and depot systems ahead of phased opening.
Ambitious Timeline for Phased Opening and Full Operations
Timetables referenced in city council materials and project summaries outline an ambitious program for bringing the Yellow Line into service. Earlier plans pointed to an initial opening window in the early 2030s, followed by a longer horizon for full line completion.
Later updates summarized in public documents indicate that Kaohsiung is pursuing a staged commissioning approach, with priority sections of the Yellow Line targeted for earlier operation while remaining segments continue construction. Council discussions have referenced a goal of opening key sections ahead of the full‑line completion date, although detailed station‑by‑station timelines remain subject to construction progress.
External compilations of Taiwan metro projects note that, as with other large urban rail undertakings in the region, the Kaohsiung Yellow Line schedule has been adjusted over time to reflect contract award dates, design refinements and coordination with adjacent infrastructure schemes. The presence of a turnkey systems consortium is expected to support tighter integration of civil and systems milestones as the project advances.
Despite schedule refinements, the Yellow Line remains one of Kaohsiung’s highest‑profile mobility investments, with the city’s sustainability reporting repeatedly highlighting the corridor as central to long‑term public transport and emissions‑reduction goals.
Boost for Sustainable Mobility and Transit‑Oriented Growth
Kaohsiung’s most recent voluntary local review on sustainable development identifies the Yellow Line and the Xiaogang‑Linyuan Line, together with the completed light rail loop, as pillars of a strategy to increase public transport’s share of urban trips. The city reports rising passenger volumes on existing metro and light rail lines, and positions the Yellow Line as essential to sustaining that growth.
Planning documents emphasize that station areas along the Yellow Line are being earmarked for transit‑oriented development, with revisions to floor‑area ratios and land‑use plans intended to cluster housing, offices and services around new metro hubs. The goal is to reduce car dependence while attracting new investment into previously under‑served districts.
The deployment of fully driverless rolling stock supplied by Stadler, combined with Siemens’ CBTC signaling, is expected to enable high‑frequency services with short headways, enhancing the attractiveness of the metro network for daily commuting. Frequent all‑day operations are also viewed as a foundation for supporting tourism, events and cross‑city travel in a metropolitan area that spans dense urban cores and coastal industrial zones.
For Stadler, the Kaohsiung Yellow Line represents both a new market and a showcase for its automated metro portfolio in Asia. For Kaohsiung, the project marks a further step toward a connected, low‑carbon transport network, with the Yellow Line’s driverless trains set to become a prominent feature of the city’s evolving skyline once testing and operations begin.
Siemens Mobility project overview
Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit Bureau Yellow Line tender update