Montreal-based Bombardier Inc, the world's largest maker of railway equipment, has withdrawn its bid for the construction of the MRT system linking CKS International Airport to Taipei City, citing safety issues, according to a company document obtained by the Taipei Times.
"We cannot afford to be associated with a project which, if performed in accordance with the current specifications and conditions, will compromise passenger safety, system efficiency, and the ability of the project to be completed on time and within the specified budget," Raymond Betler, president of Bombardier's total transit system, said in a letter sent to Wu Fu-hsiang (
"We therefore regretfully inform you that we will not bid the project as currently specified in the RFP [request for proposal]," Betler said in the letter.
The NT$26 billion (US$793.9 million) tender for the project's mechanical and electrical system has opened for bidders and is due to close on Wednesday.
Wu said he received Betler's letter, which also mentioned that the bureau had neglected the company's previous safety concerns, including a report by Brian Mellitt, a former president of the Institution of Electrical Engineers in the UK.
"Our consultants to the project said there is no problem with the design of the project," Wu said yesterday in a phone interview.
The report was unveiled by Mellitt at a public hearing at the MOTC on Aug. 26.
According to Betler's letter, the report says the RFP uses a technology that has been rejected for steep grade alignments by many developed countries.
The bureau said the problem can be solved by using track brakes, but the brakes are not provided for in the RFP's Bill of Quantities, Betler wrote.
He also noted that the current RFP will result in an inefficient system that causes accidents, station overshoots and switch overshoots. Any company that wins the bid will require substantial additional change orders, which will increase the cost and waste taxpayers' money, the letter said.
In response to the letter, Pang Jar-hua (
Pang said the project has been endorsed by high-speed railway consultants from Germany, the US and France, and that the specifications will not be changed at this late date because of Mellitt's report.
Bombardier has in the past offered suggestions on the project, Pang said, but many of its suggested changes would require patent technology and products that only Bombardier has, which would make it the only qualified bidder.
The construction conditions cited in Mellitt's report are not in accordance with Taiwan's conditions, he said.
Two years ago Bombardier was mentioned as the apparent contractor when lawmakers questioned Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Ling-san (
Suspicion were heightened by mention of a "public hearing" in the letter. The "hearing" was actually a closed-door meeting that Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chang Chuan-tien (
DPP Legislator Chen Tsiao-long (
"First, I don't think legislators should get involved in public construction projects, thereby raising doubts about an under-the-table deal," Chen said. "Second, a public hearing should be open to the public and in the legislature rather than in the MOTC."
Kathryn Nickerson, director at Bombardier's communications division, said under Taiwanese procurement law, suppliers must be totally compliant with the RFP, including the technical specifications.
The current technical specifications call for rotary propulsion and precludes Bombardier from bidding its linear-induction-motor Advanced Rapid Transit technology.
"We suggested that the technical specifications be opened up to permit all bidders can bid for the most appropriate technology in terms of safety and operational performance. This, in turn, would have given the customer the opportunity to evaluate the merits of all the proposed transit-system technologies," Nickerson said by e-mail yesterday.
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
WARNING: People in coastal areas need to beware of heavy swells and strong winds, and those in mountainous areas should brace for heavy rain, the CWA said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued sea and land warnings for Typhoon Ragasa, forecasting that it would continue to intensify and affect the nation the most today and tomorrow. People in Hualien and Taitung counties, and mountainous areas in Yilan and Pingtung counties, should brace for damage caused by extremely heavy rain brought by the typhoon’s outer rim, as it was upgraded to a super typhoon yesterday morning, the CWA said. As of 5:30pm yesterday, the storm’s center was about 630km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving northwest at 21kph, and its maximum wind speed had reached
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km
MATAIAN RIVER: Rescue operations were ongoing, with officials urging residents to move to higher floors where possible as teams focus first on those at ground level Floodwaters from the overflowing Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) barrier lake swept into Hualien County’s Guangfu Township (光復) yesterday afternoon, leaving hundreds of people trapped and three missing as of press time last night, the Hualien County Fire Bureau said. The waters surged into downtown Guangfu after the riverbank burst at about 2:50pm, carrying mud and debris and submerging streets to rooftop level in some areas. Residents were seen climbing onto vehicles and rooftops to await rescue as thick, silt-laden water inundated the town. The surge destroyed the Mataian Bridge (馬太鞍溪橋) and flooded the Guangfu Railway Station. Rescue operations were launched with support from fire departments
RSS