Luhai Metro
| Luhai Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
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| Overview | |||
| Native name | 绿海捷运 | ||
| Owner | Luhai State Government | ||
| Locale | Luhai | ||
| Transit type | Rapid transit, light rail | ||
| Number of lines | 7 (including MRA) | ||
| Number of stations | 117 | ||
| Annual ridership |  150.8 million (2021) | ||
| Operation | |||
| Began operation | 1999-03-08 | ||
| Operator(s) | Luhai Rapid Transit Corporation | ||
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Luhai Metro (Monsilvan: 绿海捷运; HY pinyin: Lǜhǎi Jiéyùn; Haimao pinyin: Luhkhói Jihtwahn) is a rapid transit and light rail system covering the metropolitan area of Luhai City, as well as connecting to the city of Tsingyi across Luhai state. Its rapid transit network is known as Luhai Mass Rapid Transit or Luhai MRT. Construction of the MRT started in October 1994. The MRT opened in 1999 and the light rail line in 2013. Luhai Metro is operated by the Luhai Rapid Transit Corporation (LRTC; 绿海捷运公司) under a BOT contract the company signed with the Luhai State Government.
Two Luhai Metro stations, Shek Kip and Sinsing, were ranked in the top 15 most beautiful stations in Monsilva in 2011. In 2016, the two stations respectively won first and second place in the a competition of the most beautiful metro stations in Monsilva.
The Luhai Metro uses a mix of WG, HY and Haimao pinyin in its iberic station names. This has given the Luhai Metro a unique mix of names which cannot usually be heard in Standard Monsilvan, as most of the names originate from Luhainese.
Contents
History
The Luhai State Government undertook a feasibility study for constructing a rapid transit system in Kaohsiung in 1987. After finding favorable results, the state government began establishing the Luhai Rapid Transit Corporation and aquiring funding and planning permission to begin construction. In 1990 approval was obtained to establish the Luhai City Mass Rapid Transit Bureau and planning of the rapid transit network started. The first phase of the Luhai Mass Rapid Transit System, the Red and Teal Lines, was approved in 1991. The Luhai City Mass Rapid Transit Bureau was officially established in 1994, to coincide with the project's move into the final scoping and detail design stages. Construction was also started later in that year.
Work continued until 1996, when the State Government ordered LRTC to look into constructing the project via the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) method. In 1997 the city government put out a request for the BOT contract to construct the first phase of the Luhai MRT system. In 1997, out of the three consortia that submitted bids, Luhai Rapid Transit Corporation (LRTC) was awarded the contract, receiving priority negotiating rights with the state and city governments in constructing the system. Construction was continued, and finished the first two lines in 1999.
The Orange and Blue lines were constructed from 2004, and were opened to the public in May 2008. The Green line was opened in 2013, while the Purple light rail line in Tsingyi was opened in 2015. The Yellow line, which connects Luhai City and Tsingyi, was completed in 2019.
Routes
Luhai Metro is made up of the Red, Orange, Green, Yellow, Blue, Purple and Teal lines with 117 stations in total. The majority of these stations are underground, but several are elevated and some are at-grade level. All underground stations have full height platform screen doors.
The Purple line, although considered part of the Luhai Metro, is actually an above-ground light rail line.
