The cost and benefit analysis of Taiwan High Speed Railway — With sustainable perspectives

Taiwan High Speed Railway (THSR) with USD16.5 billions initial investment, is the biggest build-operation-transfer project ever since in Taiwan. THSR changed the life style a lot in Taiwan. It carries passengers from Taipei (the northern part of Taiwan) to Kaohsiung (the southern part of Taiwan) within 90 minutes with speed of 300 kilo meters per hour. This study focuses on analyzing its performance with sustainable perspectives. We also monetize the benefits, such as the travel time saved, energy resource saved, pollution reduced, and accident rate decreased which THSR brought and will bring for Taiwan. The conclusion is that THSR could still prove itself to be worthy of construction, with good performance in the overall concession period.