A Taichung court has handed down a five-year sentence for attempted murder after a station worker was shoved off a platform into the path of an oncoming train, a heavy penalty in a case that shocked Taiwan's rail staff.

• A man argued with a station worker at Taiwan Railway's Wuquan station in Taichung over a ticket problem last October.
• He rammed the worker off the southbound platform onto the tracks with his elbow and body, then ran from the scene.
• The train coming into the station braked in time, but the worker suffered broken bones, including a shattered heel.
• The court also ordered three years of custodial mental health treatment alongside the prison term.
• The man denied trying to kill anyone, saying the worker slipped, though he admitted he had done wrong.

Outlook: The ruling can still be appealed, and the case adds to pressure for better protection of frontline rail staff.