By Zhen-Kang —

Photos of Kaohsiung Station

After 22 years, the new station completes Kaohsiung’s rail undergrounding project…

A man takes a photo of the old Kaohsiung Station building, now flanked by two new towers.
North entrance, featuring the old station. Photo: Zhen-Kang.

In 2002, Kaohsiung began a project to underground 15km of railway lines through the city. This coincided with the construction of the MRT network, causing chaos when roads were dug up to bury the tracks.

But the undergrounding was finished before I moved here, so I’ve enjoyed all of the benefits with none of the pain.

In place of train tracks, there’s now a 15km-long green corridor—with cycling and walking paths—across the city.

It’s a beautiful public space. I walk there often.

The final piece of the plan is Kaohsiung Station (高雄車站), an enormous building that features a 750-meter-long green canopy across the top. It links the new green corridors on the east and west sides of the city.

Aerial view of Kaohsiung Main Station, showing its 750-meter-long green roof stretching across the center of the city.
Kaohsiung Station is highlighted in this photo I took in September, just before I stole an elevator in the Chang-Gu World Trade Center.

The new Kaohsiung Station’s been operational since 2018. But it wasn’t until yesterday that it was more-or-less completed, and fully opened to the public.

Most significantly, yesterday was the first time we could walk on the roof.

Here are some photos:

A man takes a photo of the old Kaohsiung Station building, now flanked by two new towers.
The new Kaohsiung Station hotel building behind the original station building.
Oblique view of the new Kaohsiung Station hotel building, looking upwards over a spiral staircase.
Exterior of the avant-garde new Kaohsiung Station shopping mall building.
A man walks past the old Kaohsiung Station building.
The southern entrance of the new Kaohsiung Station building, featuring an avant garde ceiling of flat pebble-shaped panels and hanging lamps, designed to evoke the idea of Chinese sky lanters.
The central hall of Kaohsiung Station.
The central hall of Kaohsiung Station, viewed from B1 level.
Looking up at the ceiling of Kaohsiung Station.
Close-up of one of a hanging ceiling lights.
Zoomed-in view of a circular opening in the ceiling. Beyond it, people can be seen walking on a spiral ramp.
Symmetrical view of two escalators with a pristine wide staircase in between.
Abstract view of an escalator heading up towards ground level.
Directional signage at Kaohsiung Station.
Directional signage at Kaohsiung Station.
An illuminated floor plan of Kaohsiung Main Station, on an information booth panel.
Three information panels at Kaohsiung Station.
A traveler leaners over their charging phone outside a gift shop at Kaohsiung Station.
Top-up machines for iPASS and EasyCard at Kaohsiung Main Station.
A staff booth at Kaohsiung Main Station.
Metro passengers walking towards an escalator at Kaohsiung Station.
Two people walking down a spiral staircase at Kaohsiung Station.
Abstract view of the metallic wall panelling and ceiling tiles at Kaohsiung Station.
A white spiral staircase, descending from the rooftop.
Multiple curved layers of outdoor spaces at Kaohsiung Station.
Groups of people strolling on the rooftop garden at Kaohsiung Station.
The rooftop gardens above Kaohsiung Station.
Close-up of white balustrades and the wood-clad hotel building at Kaohsiung Station.
Three people climb a long spiral ramp, outdoors at Kaohsiung Station.
A void offering a view down to B1 level at Kaohsiung Station.
People walking past the upper floor of the old Kaohsiung Station.
A man standing on a raised outdoor platform at Kaohsiung Station, taking a photo of the cityscape.
Viewed from across a garden, two people look out at the Kaohsiung cityscape.
People exploring the expansive rooftop garden at Kaohsiung Station.
Two people eating with chopsticks on a platform outside Kaohsiung Station.
A YouBike parked at the entrance to the new Kaohsiung Station department store.
People strolling on the rooftop walkway at Kaohsiung Station.
Kids playing on the grassy rooftop of Kaohsiung Station.
A cyclist rides a YouBike along the cyclepath across the roof of Kaohsiung Station.
The wavy edges of the Kaohsiung Station rooftop.
A kid rides a bike on the cycle path across Kaohsiung Station.
A shaded platform on the roof of Kaohsiung Station.
People walking downhill on the roof of Kaohsiung Station.
A man checks his phone, standing on the rooftop garden of Kaohsiung Station.
People sitting in the shade on the rooftop garden of Kaohsiung Station.
The new hotel and shopping center buildings at Kaohsiung Station, viewed from the rooftop cycleway.
People walking on the rooftop walkway at Kaohsiung Station.
A group of people descending a spiral staircase.
Taxis parked outside Kaohsiung Station, viewed from above.
People looking out at the city scape from the roof garden of Kaohsiung Station.
The northern (secondary) entrance to Kaohsiung Station.

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