Beigang River Iron Bridge 北港溪鐵橋

5/14/2024

Beigang Iron Bridge is the longest bridge ever built by the Taiwan Sugar Company, that used to connect sugar fields in Chiayi to the Beigang Sugar Factory. Unfortunately, the bridge was washed away in floodwaters during Typhoon Sinlaku in 2008.
Currently a new "Daughter Bridge" has been completed to connect the two sides, and further construction is expected to connect the two sides of the river via pedestrian walkways by 2025.

Historical Background:
Before Han Chinese settlement, Yunlin was inhabited by native peoples. During the Dutch era in Taiwan in the 1600s, Chinese farmers first began to move here. One notable Chinese pioneer was Yan Siqi (also known as Pedro Chino, or the Pioneer King of Taiwan). He created a settlement in Ponkan or Bengang in Mandarin (modern day Beigang) and recruited over 3000 farmers from Fujian and nearby regions in China to come farm in Taiwan. He also had 13 ships and a merchant trade and formed an alliance with the local indigenous population.
Dutch and Chinese farmers introduced mango, sweet potato, pineapple, and many other crops to Taiwan at this time.
When Koxinga invaded Taiwan, many local Chinese farmers such as Chen Lixun supported him and were rewarded with lands once the Dutch were conquered.
During the Qing Dynasty, Beigang was known as Bengang (笨港), and its waterways were made deeper than other areas in Taiwan, allowing for larger ships and more trade. Beigang soon became one of the most prosperous areas in central Taiwan.
After many Typhoons and floods, the Beigang River became silted and shallow, and also due to silting Beigang was moved further and further from the seashore. Up to the Japanese colonial period, the port lost its function as a maritime trading location, but it remained a center for agricultural commerce. The establishment of sugar mills during the Japanese colonial period also brought significant economic benefits to Beigang for nearly a hundred years.
However, since the Japanese colonial period, due to the silting of the port, the lack of a main railway line passing through, and the absence of a major highway, its economic influence has diminished significantly.

Beigang Creek Iron Bridge
The Beigang River Iron Bridge, also known as the Fuxing Bridge or Fuxing Iron Bridge, was built during the Japanese colonial period in Taiwan and later rebuilt and extended during the ROC era. It is located over the Beigang River at the border of Beigang Town in Yunlin County and Xingang Township. Currently, it is abandoned and partially destroyed due to flooding.
During the Japanese Era, the Beigang River Bridge was originally a wooden structure built to facilitate the transportation of sugarcane to the Beigang Sugar Factory during the Japanese colonial period. Construction began in 1909 by the Beigang Sugar Manufacturing Society for the Beigang Line of the sugar industry railway between Beigang and Chiayi, which was completed and opened on August 30, 1911, along with the wooden Beigang River Bridge, spanning a length of 220 meters. In 1917, passenger services started operating.
In 1943, the wooden Beigang Creek Bridge between Beigang and Wan Zai Nei was washed away by flooding, causing a train passing at that time to derail into the creek, resulting in dozens of casualties, making it the deadliest accident in the history of sugar railway passenger services.
During the ROC Era after World War II in 1945, due to strong public demand, the Beigang River Bridge was repaired in 1951 and named the "Fuxing Iron Bridge."
The Beigang Creek Iron Bridge had a total of 76 bridge piers, including 74 reinforced concrete girder piers. The upper structure of the bridge consisted of 74 composite steel beams and 2 lower-bearing steel plate girder beams.
Train services resumed to Beigang. In 1967, the Beigang River was dredged, and embankments were built on the east bank of the iron bridge. Because of this, in 1968, the Taiwan Sugar Company raised and extended the Beigang Creek Iron Bridge by about 600 meters. The project was completed in June 1969, extending the total length of the bridge to 878 meters, making it the longest bridge used by the Taiwan Sugar Railway. On August 17, 1982, passenger services on the Beigang Line ceased, and the Beigang River Iron Bridge remained only for transporting raw materials. In 1998, Taiwan Sugar Factory completely ceased railway transportation in the area and the Beigang Line was discontinued.
After the Beigang River Iron Bridge was decommissioned, Taiwan Sugar planned to demolish it in May 2000. Fortunately, it was saved due to the efforts of local activists. The bridge was made a historical site in 2001.
Unfortunately, on September 12, 2002, several bridge piers at the north end of the bridge's water area were washed away by flooding, leading to its closure. Although efforts were made to repair it, the bridge suffered damage from flooding again during Typhoon Sinlaku in 2008.

In 2021, The "Daughter Bridge" was finished alongside the old Fuxing Bridge to connect the two sides via pedestrian walkways. However, the Daughter Bridge was not finished and connected at the time of writing.
In 2022, the central government approved a budget of 180 million yuan to support the reconstruction and repair project of the Beigang Iron Bridge on the Xingang, Chiayi side. Construction started on May 9, 2023, and is expected to be completed by late 2024 or early 2025 to complete the connection between the two sides.

Hours:
24/7

Price:
Free

Where to stay:
We have stayed at and recommend Ai Ni Ya Hotel, with great quality and service right in downtown Beigang (book on Agoda here or Booking.com here).
We also recommend the Grand Earl Hotel, a high class hotel in central Douliu (book on Agoda here or Booking.com here)
Looking for a hotel? We recommend booking through Agoda here, which provides the best quality selection of accommodation on the islands. Find out where to stay in our Taiwan hotels guide or search for the best hotel deals in Taiwan here.

Tours in Yunlin:
Tours and activities in Yunlin include Janfusun Fancy World Amusement Park, Kite Surfing, Tree Climbing , Chaoyang Green Energy Farm, Sam Siu Garden, Pink Castle Park, Gukeng Green Tunnel, Caoling Highway, and more.
You can find more tours of Yunlin on Klook here or KKday here.

How to get there:
By Scooter: From Chiayi, go east on Highway 164 until you reach Beigang. The bridge is on the east side of town. There is free parking on the side of the road.
Looking for scooter rental in Yunlin? Check out Klook here or KKday here to search for options. You can also check out our scooter rental guide here.
By Car: From National Freeway 1, get off at the no. 257 Xingang / Minxiong Exit and keep going east on Highway 164 until you Reach Beigang. The bridge is on the east side of town. There is paid parking near the riverside at the end of the old street.
If you are looking for car rentals, you can also search Qeeq here, Klook here, or KKday here. You can also check out our car rental guide here.
By Bus/Train: From Chiayi HSR Station, you can take bus 7235 for about 40 minutes to Beigang Town.
You can also book tickets to travel to Yunlin via inter-city bus on Klook h ere.
You can book tickets to Yunlin via high speed rail (HSR) on Klook here or KKDay here.
Book tickets via the normal train (TRA) on Klook here.
By Bicycle: Cycling is the best way to enjoy Taiwan's landscapes if you have the time and energy. Looking for bicycle rentals in Taiwan? You can search on KKday here and search for tours on Klook here. You can also check out our Taiwan cycling guide here.

Map:
Please see below:

Our Journey:

I have been to the Beigang Iron Bridge twice. It is a really nice area and a beautiful piece of construction that is connecting local residents with their past and preserving history, as well as providing an awesome pedestrian and cycling path connecting Xingang to Beigang.

Check out our drone video above for an overview of the area.

360 degree view above the broken sugar train bridge in Beigang, Yunlin County. The bridge was knocked out in a Typhoon...
Posted by Foreigners in Taiwan 外國人在台灣 on Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Or check out the 360 degree spherical panorama above.

The levee which was built in the 1960s to stop flooding.

Map of historical sites in the area.

The top of the levee.

View of the new and old bridges.

Old Fuxing Bridge on the right, new Daughter Bridge on the left.

Right now the old Fuxing Bridge is covered in weeds. It was washed away by a Typhoon in 2008.

There is also a new "Sky Bridge" connecting Beigang with the new Daughter bridge with a gentle slope.

Another view of the new sky bridge.

View of the broken Fuxing Bridge from the new Sky Bridge.

Closer view.

Old Japanese era building near the bridge.

Further down the sky bridge.

Still further down.

View of Wenhua Road from the bridge.

Another view of Wenhua Road.

Closeup of downtown Beigang.

The bridge here slopes gently upward and is easy to ride a bike on.

View of Yimin Road.

The bridge then slopes down along the old sugar tracks.

Old houses nearby.

History of the area.

The tracks here used to connect with the old Beigang Sugar Factory which still stands today as an art space.

Another view of the old tracks now turned into pedestrian space.

They left some of the old railroad tracks here.

This was the site of one of the old stations.

At the end of the tracks is an old abandoned building.

Another view of the torn down building.

Map of Beigang.

Another view from the Sky Bridge.

View down the Levee.

When we were there, there was a brush fire.

Firefighters putting out the brush fire.

The fire was out.

View of the scorched hillside.

The Daughter Bridge was finished around 2021, but it was never connected to the other side.

View of the old Fuxing Bridge.

View of the old bridge via drone.

Wider shot of the old bridge.

Closer view.

Explanation of the water tower near Beigang Old Street.

View inside the covered Daughter Bridge.

View down river.

Another view of the bridge.

At the end of the bridge it stops here. We are waiting on more construction to refurbish the existing bridge on this side of the river and connect it to the Daughter bridge.

The refurbishment of this bridge should be completed soon.

Another view down river.

View of the daughter bridge.

Another view of the daughter bridge.

Some of the old bridge in the water.

Pavilion on the Levee.

Last view of the daughter bridge.

Culprit that probably started the fire.

Check out more photos of the area in the photo gallery above.

If you have time, you should also check out the Beigang Sugar Factory nearby, which has recently been renovated into an art and exposition space. You can also find the Taisugar ice cream shop there.

Don't forget there are many other activities and places to see in Yunlin such as Janfusun Fancy World Amusement Park, Kite Surfing, Tree Climbing, Chaoyang Green Energy Farm, Sam Siu Garden, Pink Castle Park, Gukeng Green Tunnel, Caoling Highway, and more.
You can find more tours of Yunlin on Klook here or KKday here.

You can check out our full guide to Yunlin here.

You can also see our full guide to Taiwan here.