A Ministry of Transportation and Communications official said yesterday the airport-rail project may have lost its initial purpose -- that of being a quick, direct form of transportation between the CKS International Airport and Taipei.
Proposals now include between eight and 16 stops on the approximately 30km route, slowing the train to a crawl. In addition, the needs of international airport passengers and commuters along the train line are totally different.
"Airport travelers need spacey compartments for luggage, longer boarding time between train stops and a direct line that shuttles them to the airport as fast as possible," said James Chen (
"That's totally different from the MRT design, which is usually jam-packed with passengers."
Chen's arguments supported a back-up plan revealed on Monday by Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Ling-san, (
Such a plan could be carried out for around NT$20 billion, he said.
Local government officials and representatives from neighboring townships, however, immediately voiced strong opposition at the hearing yesterday, saying the link should also provide a boost to local economies.
They argue that the government should follow through with the original 35km railway blueprint designed by the failed contractor -- Evertransit International Development Corp (
"The urgently needed direct airport link will transport an estimated 160,000 passengers per day in 2021, with 63 percent of them being commuters along the line," said Ou Lein-fa (
County support
The county government supports using Evertransit's design scheme since its feasibility study has been approved and partial construction preparations were already underway, he said
The Taoyuan-Linkou railroad line is not a good plan since no evaluation has been done and travel time would be 20 minutes longer, he said.
"There should be no further delays since this issue will have a profound impact on national competitiveness," said Wang Liang-shiu, head of the Taipei City Government's rapid-transit-systems department.
Lin, however, has alsready said that the government needs to respect the contractor's intellectual property rights on the railway design. It's not possible, therefore, to take over Evertransit's project.
Hsinchuang City Mayor Huang Lin Ling-ling (
She said the plan to a build a system upon existing rail lines was laughable. She also criticized the 37.1km plan formulated by BES Engineering Corp (
Also endorsing the idea of building the system on Evertransit's blueprint, Jason Chang (張學孔), professor of transportation systems at National Taiwan University, said that it should be lawful for the government to take over Evertransit's failed project.
But still, Chang urged the government to hold IPR negotiations with Evertransit to clarify any possible legal entanglements.
Chen, nevertheless, said that the government is in no rush to talk to Evertransit since only if BES turns down the job would the government begin considering alternative plans.
He also said that such IPR negotiations may only serve to futher delay the project.
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