Taipei Railway Workshop and Songshan Tobacco Factory (臺北鐵路機廠 + 松山製菸工廠)
Taipei Railway Workshop
(last update 2023/2) I visited Taipei Railway Workshop during an open period where you could look around the grounds and buildings. The site was much as it had been left on the last day of work. Work is ongoing here and as of 2023 the site is open for large organized group tours only. It seems from plans most of the site will be retained as a railway museum. I visited toward sunset on the final weekend of the open period so apologies for the rushed and grainy pictures!
The Taipei Railway Workshop is a huge facility to the north of Xinyi which was a maintenance depot for Taiwan's trains. It dates from the Japanese era when the railways expanded massively and facilities near Taipei Main Station were too small and hemmed in to expand.
The main entrance. The sign reads 'Railroad Cultural Festival'.
Abandoned sidings with the new Eslite building at Songshan Tobacco Factory behind.
The first buildings were built in the 1930's and included the very impressive carriage and engine works buildings. At that time the site was outside the city limits but almost 90 years later it is surrounded by the city and the land has high development value.
We started our tour in the main entrance building which had been converted into a small museum. There were a few artifacts on display, such as old timetables and tools. Outside it was possible to explore the majority of the site with just some parts to the south and east off limits.
The next building we entered was for carriage repair. This building was cavernous and very long. It was dark inside and a hypnotic light and shadow artwork was projecting on one wall.
The second building was the engine works. This was an impressive sight. The main hall is over 100 meters long and about as tall as a six floor building. The roof is constructed out of complex tightly interlocking steel bars. It's an amazing piece of architecture and engineering. I was happy that most of the buildings were full of the tools and other items that had been left there. In a lot of heritage buildings in Taipei, whoever manages them tends to decide to get rid of everything in the interior. It was great to see the machinery left as though work had just finished.
The main engine works building and an old steam train boiler.
Some of the machinery was really ancient and included a steam hammer from Glasgow dating from 1889 in a smaller building.
L: The 1889 steam hammer. Above and below: Old tools and machinery.
Behind the engine works was the boiler house. This was inaccessible so we passed through a few smaller buildings nearby. Behind these there were some sidings, and several trains had been abandoned here (the workshop is now cut off from the mainline). They were mostly passenger trains painted in the same colors as the regular express trains. They looked in quite a sorry state. It seemed like they dated from about the 1970's and they reminded me of British trains that I remember from when I was a small child (I later found out they are British built trains called EMU100’s!). Behind these were some orange diesel trains that looked like they had not been used for a long time either.
Old trains in the yard
We passed a few more interesting smaller buildings and a big winch crane that was used to lift carriages up.
I tried to head to the Japanese era bathhouse but was too late to avoid closing time. I managed a quick look in the side room though. The main room is a distinctive barrel roofed building that can be seen from Bade Road.
Songshan Tobacco Factory
A view of 101 and Xinyi. The Railway Workshop and Tobacco Factory - from Modern Taipei
Immediately to the south is the Songshan Tobacco Factory. This has recently been renovated into a center for design and exhibitions. The main building contains a design museum and various smaller exhibitions around the subject. There are also some separate warehouses which have a rotating set of exhibitions (most recently a Lego and a Disney one), and a boiler house which is yet to be totally restored.
The art-deco entrance.
The main building dates from 1937 and is a beautiful art deco structure with a grand entrance. The factory dates from an era when bottom line wasn't the only factor in industrial architecture and there are many subtle details and some beautiful tile work. The main building also has a couple of large courtyard gardens. It seems it would have been a very pleasant workplace. The structure has been restored well and much of the interior detail remains. Sadly though I couldn't find any old machinery, but perhaps there is some on the upper floors.
The new Eslite behind the factory.
The other main building on site is the new Eslite and hotel. It's fairly well designed and doesn't jar too badly with the historic buildings. The factory is now fairly well known among Taiwanese and it was very busy the last weekend I was there. Currently, the controversial Taipei Dome project is being constructed to the south. Tree Protection Activists can be seen on Guangfu Road protecting the remaining flora from destruction (The Dome project uprooted a lot of mature trees and poor transplantation killed many). The project has since been mired in scandal and has halted (as of 2023 this all seems like a distant memory and the dome is on its way to completion)
Taipei Dome
Directions: The entrance to the Railway Workshop is on Bade Road. It's opposite the huge and under-used shopping mall with the large globe shaped entrance (Core Pacific, now demolished). The tobacco factory can only be entered from either the north, where the new Eslite is, or the east, where there is an entrance through a park, or the west. Eventually there’ll be a way in from the south once the dome is finished. Have a look over at the Hidden Taiwan Map to find some more interesting places. The adventures that make up these entries are often posted as Instagram stories at tomrookart first. So give that a follow too if you like as it can sometimes be a year or more before stuff turns up here! Finally please take a look at my work around Taipei and Taiwan here.
