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Banciao City (traditional Chinese: 板橋市; Hanyu Pinyin: Bǎnqiáo Shì; Wade-Giles: Pan-ch'iao-shih; Taiwanese POJ: Pang-kiô-chhī), also commonly spelled Panchiao (Wade-Giles) or Banqiao (Hanyu Pinyin), is the county seat of Taipei County, Taiwan (Republic of China). It is the most populous county-controlled city in Taiwan.

Banciao City 板橋市
Seal
Country	Republic of China
Province	Taiwan Province
County	Taipei County
Established	1846
Government
- Mayor	江惠貞
Area
- Total	23.42 km² (9 sq mi)
Population (2006)
- Total	543,342
- Density	23,199.9/km² (60,087.5/sq mi)
Time zone	CST (UTC+8)
Website: [1]

Contents 1 Geography 2 Name Origins 3 Education 3.1 Colleges 3.2 High Schools 4 Tourism 5 Sports Facilities 6 Transportation 7 Sister Cities 8 Important people from Banciao 9 External links

Banciao is located in western part of the Taipei Basin of northern Taiwan, in the subtropical climate zone.

Banciao is surrounded by several cities and towns: Taipei to the east, Sanchong to the north, Sinjhuang to the northwest, Shulin to the southwest, Tucheng to the south, and Jhonghe to the southeast. Banciao is also bordered by two rivers, Sindan River to the northeast and Dahan River to the northwest.

The city's old name was 枋橋 (py: Fāng-qiáo), pronounced Pang-kiô in Taiwanese, and means "bridge made of wooden planks". The name's origin goes back to the Qing Dynasty during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor (1735 - 1796 AD). A wooden bridge was built for pedestrians to cross a brook located in the west of today's Banciao. Eventually, this place acquired the name Pang-kiô (枋橋). In 1920, the Japanese government changed the name to 板橋 (py: Bǎnqiáo, tw: Pán-kiô), which has remained unchanged to this day.

Banciao is home to several universities, such as the National Taiwan University of Arts, the most famous university for the arts in Taiwan. As for secondary education, the National Panchiao Senior High School is considered one of the top high schools in the Taipei area^{[citation needed]}.

• National Taiwan University of Arts (國立台灣藝術大學)
• Oriental Institute of Technology (亞東技術學院)
• Chihlee Institute of Technology (致理技術學院)

• National Panchiao Senior High School (國立板橋高中)
• Kwan Jen High School (光仁中學)
• Hai Shan High School (海山中學)

The Lin Family Mansion and Garden (林本源園邸) is one of the best examples of Qing era Chinese architecture in Taiwan. It was originally built in the late 1800s.

Due to its position as the county seat of Taipei County, Banciao has several sports facilities, and the annual Taipei County sports game is hosted in the city. However, Banciao lacks major baseball facilities, forcing its baseball fans to go to Taipei or Sinjhuang to watch baseball games.

• Taipei County Stadium
• Banciao City Stadium

Banciao is well served by multiple public transportation services. A couple dozen bus lines^{[citation needed]} connect Banciao with nearby cities, especially Taipei. There are five Taipei Rapid Transit System stations in Banciao, four along the Banqiao Line and one on the Tucheng Line. Banciao Station serves as Taiwan Railway Administration and Taiwan High Speed Rail trains, as well as the Taipei RTS. All railroads have been underground since 1997.

Addison, Texas, USA Tony Chang - Salesmen Scott Chang - CEO of Lastertech City of Banciao website Coordinates: 25°00′40″N, 121°26′45″E  This Republic of China (Taiwan) location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.