The Kaohsiung City Mass Rapid Transit Bureau was officially established in 1994, to coincide with the project's move into the final scoping and detail design stages.

[10] Work continued until 1996, when the Central Government ordered KMRT to look into constructing the project via the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) method.

In 1999, the city government put out a request for the BOT contract to construct the first phase of the KMRT system.

In 2000, out of the three consortia that submitted bids, Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corporation (KRTC) was awarded the contract, receiving priority negotiating rights with the city government in constructing the system.

[10] The current system cost NT$181.3 (US$5.46 billion) to construct and includes a contract for 30 years of operation and maintenance.

The scandal had tainted the public confidence in the construction of the system and prompted a diplomatic response by the Thai Prime Minister asking the migrant workers to return to Thailand.

Chen Chu, the Chairperson of the Council of Labor Affairs of the Executive Yuan, resigned as a result of the scandal.

In December 2005, another subway tunnel section of the Orange line at eastern Kaohsiung collapsed during construction.

Construction accidents delayed the opening of the MRT considerably from the originally planned December 2006 date.

The light rail transit (LRT) system consists of the Circular Line with 38 stations.

From the intersection of Yanhai and Hanmin Roads in the Siaogang District in the South, the Red Line travels northwards, following Jhongshan Road as it passes by Kaohsiung International Airport, Labour Park, Sanduo Shopping District, Central Park, and the Dagangpu circle to Kaohsiung Main Station.

The total length of Red Line is approximately 28.3 kilometres (17.6 mi), with 24 stations on the route, of which 15 are underground, 8 elevated and 1 at ground level.

Two depots serve the line near Caoya and Kaohsiung Medical University Gangshan Hospital.

The Red line (excluding Kaohsiung Medical University Gangshan Hospital metro station) commenced passenger service on 9 March 2008.

The route then follows Jhongjheng Road as it passes by Kaohsiung City Council, Dagangpu Circle, Cultural Center, Martial Arts Stadium, and the Weiwuying Park planning site before entering parts of the city formerly part of Kaohsiung County.

A temporary light rail system for demonstration purposes, with just 2 stations, was built in the Central Park in 2004, using Melbourne D2 Tram cars from Siemens.

Alongside a twin-track tunnel, it will construct five commuter stations—Fine Arts Museum, Gushan, Sankuaicuo, Minzu and National Science and Technology Museum —as well as move underground Kaohsiung Station (R11 Station of Kaohsiung Metro included).

In addition to the RFID IC token, there are four kinds of contactless smart card accepted.

LCD television units have also been installed on platform doors for the broadcast of train information and advertisements.