The EMU500 series is a series of

electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number o ...

passenger trains operated by

Taiwan Railways Administration Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) was a governmental agency in Taiwan which operated Taiwan Railway from 1948 to 2023. It managed, maintained, and operated conventional passenger and freight Rail transport, railway services on of track. Pa ...

(TRA). The trains are built as

local trains Regional rail is a public rail transport service that operates between towns and cities. These trains operate with more stops than inter-city rail, and unlike commuter rail, operate beyond the limits of urban areas, connecting smaller cities a ...

and are used throughout the country's rail network.

History

In the 1990s, the TRA was facing an aging fleet of local trains, all of which did not feature

air conditioning Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C (US) or air con (UK), is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior temperature, and in some cases, also controlling the humidity of internal air. Air c ...

. Therefore, in 1993, the company entered a contract with South Korean manufacturer

Daewoo Daewoo ( ; ; ; ; literally "great universe" and a portmanteau of "''dae''" meaning great, and the given name of founder and chairman Kim Woo-choong) also known as the Daewoo Group, was a major South Korean chaebol (type of conglomerate) and aut ...

to build 344 cars, which would be arranged all into 86 trainsets. The first of these trains arrived in the summer of 1995, and the first passenger service began in 11 October of the same year.

Features

The train is built on a system developed by

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...

, which features

three-phase Three-phase electric power (abbreviated 3ϕ) is a common type of alternating current (AC) used in electricity generation, Electric power transmission, transmission, and Electric power distribution, distribution. It is a type of polyphase system ...

induction motor An induction motor or asynchronous motor is an AC motor, AC electric motor in which the electric current in the rotor (electric), rotor that produces torque is obtained by electromagnetic induction from the magnetic field of the stator winding ...

s and a

16-bit 16-bit microcomputers are microcomputers that use 16-bit microprocessors. A 16-bit register can store 216 different values. The range of integer values that can be stored in 16 bits depends on the integer representation used. With the two ...

control system. Trains are usually operated in four-car units in the following order: a motorized car with the cab (EMC), an unmotorized car with a

pantograph A pantograph (, from their original use for copying writing) is a Linkage (mechanical), mechanical linkage connected in a manner based on parallelograms so that the movement of one pen, in tracing an image, produces identical movements in a se ...

(EP), an unmotorized car (ET), and a motorized car (EM). The

braking system A brake is a mechanical device that inhibits motion by absorbing energy from a moving system. It is used for slowing or stopping a moving vehicle, wheel, axle, or to prevent its motion, most often accomplished by means of friction. Background ...

is supplied by

Knorr-Bremse Knorr-Bremse AG is a German manufacturer of braking systems for rail and commercial vehicles that has operated since 1905. Other products in the company's portfolio include intelligent door systems, control components, air conditioning system ...

. The exterior of the train is made of

stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...

, the first in Taiwan to use the material. Its appearance is based on the design of the

DR2900 series The DR2900 series and DR3000 series is two series of diesel multiple unit trains operated by the Taiwan Railways Administration as Tze-chiang limited express on non-electrified mainlines. They were originally built by Hitachi in 1986(DR2900) and ...

. Each car features three doors on each side, an improvement from the

EMU400 series The Taiwan Railway EMU400 was an electric train purchased by Taiwan Railways Administration from Union Carriage & Wagon of South Africa in 1990. It was the first generation of commuter electric trains for Taiwan Railways. During its operating li ...

' two doors. The

destination sign A destination sign (North American English) or destination indicator/destination blind (British English) is a sign mounted on the front, side or rear of a public transport vehicle, such as a bus, tram/streetcar or light rail vehicle, that di ...

s have black text over a white background, which is inverted from the EMU400 series; this was updated to an

LED display A LED display is a flat panel display that uses an array of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as pixels for a video display. Their brightness allows them to be used outdoors where they are visible in the sun for store signs and billboards. I ...

in 2004–2005. Similar to other local trains, seats run parallel to the walls of the train. The cars originally had one step at each door; this was removed beginning in 2017 by raising platforms and remodeling the interior to turn the trains into a

low floor Low or LOW or lows, may refer to: People * Low (surname) Low is an English language, English and Languages of Scotland, Scottish surname. It is also a common surname found among Overseas Chinese language, Chinese communities around the world. ...

layout for accessibility. With this change, the doorframe was raised slightly, and an LED display was installed above the doors. As of August 2019, 246 out of 334 cars are low floor, The train is built on a system developed by

, which features

s and a

control system. Trains are usually operated in four-car units in the following order: a motorized car with the cab (EMC), an unmotorized car with a

(EP), an unmotorized car (ET), and a motorized car (EM). The

is supplied by

. The exterior of the train is made of

, the first in Taiwan to use the material. Its appearance is based on the design of the DR3000 series. Each car features three doors on each side, an improvement from the

' two doors. The

s have black text over a white background, which is inverted from the EMU400 series; this was updated to an

in 2004–2005. Similar to other local trains, seats run parallel to the walls of the train. The cars were originally designed with one step at each door, but were converted into a

layout between 2016 and 2019 by raising station platforms and remodeling the interior. With this change, the doorframe was raised slightly, and an LED display was installed above the doors. As of August 2019, 246 out of 334 cars are low floor. As of 2020, the traction system is also being upgraded.

Incidents

On 15 June 2007, a southbound EMU500 series train number 2719 was changing tracks south of Dali station when it was hit by a northbound E400 series that was undergoing testing. The E400 hit the second car of the four-car unit, killing 5 and injuring 17. The TRA determined that the crash was caused by a faulty ATP system in the E400, as well as speeding by the train driver causing him to misread the signs. On 8 July 2016, a bomb was detonated within a northbound EMU550 train number 1258 near Songshan station, injuring 25 people. The perpetrator, who was also injured, was arrested and sentenced to 30 years in prison. On 27 April 2020, A EMU500 series train collided with another EMU500 series train near

Hualien station Hualien () is a railway station in Hualien City, Hualien County, Taiwan served by Taiwan Railways Administration. It is the terminal station of North-link line and the starting station of Taitung line. Overview The station has two islan ...

, injuring 7 TRA employees.

References

{{Taiwanloco Electric multiple units of Taiwan 25 kV AC multiple units Train-related introductions in 1995