I'm on my way to Taiwan in April--am probably going to hop on a train at some point, so I'm curious....

How different will the platform signs be from those used on JR lines in Japan (other than the language, obviously)? Here's a photo, for comparison:



Arrows on left and right ends:
Indicated which side of the platform your train would arrive on

First column:
Type of service
In Japan, that meant Rapid, S Limited, Limited, etc.

Second column:
�Train Name/Boarding Position� (but was really just the latter)
On the platform �floor,� there were several types of markings that indicated where to stand so you line up with the doors of each car as the train came to a stop. In the photo here, the correct boarding positions for the second train, the Yamatoji Rapid, were those marked with both a triangle and the number 3 or 8.

Third column:
Departure time

Fourth column:
The destination station

If you stood there long enough, you'd eventually see the boards flash from Japanese to English.

Are platform signs in Taiwan somewhat similar to the above? Thanks in advance for shared wisdom.

Yes, somewhat.

You're welcome!

Mind if I ask what's different...? As a female traveling solo, I try to avoid standing on a platform looking utterly perplexed when possible.

I wrote my flippant answer in a hurry and assumed some other posters would pitch in!

It depends a bit which type of train you are on - local trains, underground/metro, or bullet train (THSR).

In general they are Japanese influenced. Signs are of a similar sort and alternate between English and Chinese. Often the multi-coloured LED dotmatrix sort as per your picture. Trains (except metro) have "numbers" (they always seem to be 4 digits long) - don't confuse this with the departure time! They are usually in the first column.

Signs on the "back wall" of a normal train platform typically show the station name in Chinese and English and show the previous and next station in smaller characters. THSR/metro stations don't do this, though they have other diagrams that make it easy to work out where the line is going/coming from.

Honestly it's all pretty clear. Taipei Metro stations have "female waiting areas" (which I find patronising/insulting, but that's a culture thing I suppose). Taiwan is pretty safe, I wouldn't worry unduly.

One complication is that Taiwan uses different systems for writing Chinese in English. Also there can be careless errors. It's getting better now, but especially with older stations it's not unusual to see a station name spelt differently on the platform from a map. I lived in Taipei suburbia for a while. The place I lived in was variously written Chungho, Zhonghe, Jhonghe, Chung Ho, Zhong He, etc etc. A lot of politics behind this - pity really when it's designed to help foreigners!

In my experience, English is more widely spoken in Taiwan than Japan. In particular, THSR staff often speak English and are sometimes pro-actively keen to help. If you speak Japanese bear in mind that some Taiwanese speak this too, particularly older people.

Not to worry--didn't take it as flippant (just a little less info than I'd hoped for).

NO KIDDING. Have been bumping into that as I plot locations out on Google Maps. Finally decided if it's phonetically "in the ballpark," odds are, I'm close. Crazy, but hey. If I want 100% predictability in life, might as well stay home...

...which is soooooo not gonna happen.

You'll have a great time. I kind of fell in love with Taiwan during the week I spent there in Nov. Going back for a little longer trip later this year.

If you haven't done so check out the Anthony Bourdain "Layover" on Taipei. It's available on YouTube.

Thanks for the tip--had to smile when seeing him in the Woobar at W--that's where I'm staying (at the W...not just in the bar).

taiwan trains are, generally, easier to figure out than japan (at least in taipei). for one, they will all have english spellings, unlike tokyo, which can be hit or miss...