Ferry Service to Link Japan’s Ishigaki Island, Taiwan City

Keelung, Taiwan, May 28 (Jiji Press)–A regular passenger ferry service is set to be launched to connect the northern Taiwan city of Keelung and Ishigaki Island in the southernmost Japan prefecture of Okinawa. For its maiden voyage, the Yaima Maru ferry will depart from the port of Keelung late Thursday and is scheduled to arrive at Ishigaki Island on Friday morning. This will be the first time in 18 years that a regular passenger ship connecting Taiwan and the island is operated, according to Uni-Wagon Marine Co., a Taiwanese company entrusted with operating the service. “I hope the Yaima Maru will be loved by many people and help deepen the friendship and trust between the two regions,” Yoshitaka Nakayama, mayor of the city of Ishigaki, said at a ceremony held at the port of Keelung on Thursday to mark the service launch. The ferry, owned by Shosen Yaima Co. in the city of Ishigaki, is equipped with guest rooms and bathrooms, and can accommodate up to 545 passengers. The one-way, 270-kilometer trip will take about eight hours. The service will start with one round trip per week and increase to two in July. The cheapest one-way fare in May-June is about 10,000 yen. Passenger traffic between Taiwan and Ishigaki Island is increasing thanks to regular direct flights between the regions. Yeh Hsieh-Lung, director-general of the Maritime and Port Bureau of Taiwan’s Transportation and Communications Ministry, said at the ceremony that container cargo shipments using the Yaima Maru are expected to begin in about six months. He expressed hopes that the new cargo service will help boost logistics between Taiwan and Japan. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]