Transport modes
| Mandarin | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 捷運 | jiéyùn | MRT — metro (Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taichung + Taoyuan Airport MRT) |
| 公車 | gōngchē | bus |
| 計程車 | jìchéngchē | taxi |
| 火車 | huǒchē | train (TRA rail) |
| 高鐵 | gāotiě | High Speed Rail (THSR) |
| 機車 | jīchē | scooter |
| 腳踏車 | jiǎotàchē | bicycle |
| 飛機 | fēijī | airplane |
| 船 | chuán | boat |
| 車 | chē | car / vehicle |
Stations & platforms
| Mandarin | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 車站 | chēzhàn | station |
| 捷運站 | jiéyùnzhàn | MRT station |
| 火車站 | huǒchēzhàn | train station |
| 高鐵站 | gāotiězhàn | HSR station |
| 公車站牌 | gōngchē zhànpái | bus stop |
| 月台 | yuètái | platform |
| 出口 | chūkǒu | exit |
| 入口 | rùkǒu | entrance |
| 轉乘 | zhuǎnchéng | transfer |
| 往～方向 | wǎng ～ fāngxiàng | bound for ~ |
| 幾號出口 | jǐ hào chūkǒu | which exit number? |
EasyCard & tickets
| Mandarin | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 悠遊卡 | Yōuyóukǎ | EasyCard — Taiwan's transit IC card |
| 一卡通 | Yìkǎtōng | iPASS — Kaohsiung's IC card |
| 加值 | jiāzhí | top up |
| 餘額 | yú'é | balance |
| 刷卡 | shuākǎ | to tap a card |
| 單程票 | dānchéngpiào | single ticket |
| 來回票 | láihuípiào | round-trip ticket |
| 車票 | chēpiào | ticket |
| 自由座 | zìyóuzuò | unreserved seat (HSR) |
| 對號座 | duìhàozuò | reserved seat (HSR) |
Asking and directing
| Mandarin | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 到～怎麼去 | dào ～ zěnme qù | how do I get to ~? |
| 這班車到～嗎 | zhè bān chē dào ～ ma | does this bus/train go to ~? |
| 在哪裡下車 | zài nǎlǐ xiàchē | where do I get off? |
| 下一站是哪裡 | xià yí zhàn shì nǎlǐ | what's the next station? |
| 我在哪裡轉乘 | wǒ zài nǎlǐ zhuǎnchéng | where do I transfer? |
| 有位子嗎 | yǒu wèizi ma | are there seats? |
Taxi phrases
| Mandarin | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 計程車 | jìchéngchē | taxi |
| 請到台北車站 | qǐng dào Táiběi Chēzhàn | to Taipei Main Station, please |
| 這裡停就好，謝謝 | zhèlǐ tíng jiù hǎo, xièxie | you can stop here, thanks |
| 車站在哪裡 | chēzhàn zài nǎlǐ | where is the station? |
Mini practice
What is 捷運?
The MRT — Taiwan's city metro (Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taichung, plus the Taoyuan Airport MRT). The everyday word for 'subway'.
What is a 悠遊卡?
EasyCard — the IC card that rides MRT, buses, trains, and YouBike, and pays at convenience stores.
How do you tell a taxi where to go?
請到 + place — 請到台北車站 'to Taipei Main Station, please'.
高鐵 vs 火車?
高鐵 = High Speed Rail (bullet train, west coast). 火車 = regular TRA trains — slower, more stops, cheaper.
