By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter, in KaohsiungThe Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) yesterday officially launched a new theme train from Taipei, with the train’s exterior featuring two popular cartoon characters created by Japanese illustrator Kanahei. The company said that the train, featuring Piske (P助) and Usagi (粉紅兔兔), is to operate until September next year, adding that all high-speed rail passengers would have a chance to ride the new train in the next 10 months. The company and Kanehei also released 14 co-branded items related to the new train, including pull-back trains, belt bags, stuffed animals, ticket holders and key chains. Piske and Usagi are also appear on the uniforms of train conductors, on-board service personnel and station crew, THSRC Spokesperson Johnson Sun (孫鴻文) said yesterday. The company this year also began to use Taiwanese paint instead of Japanese paint to furbish the bodies of five trains, he said.

Source: Taipei Times November 14, 2019 16:03 UTC