Although the Dongmen MRT station in Taipei is set to open at the end of this month, there are still some flaws that need to be fixed, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications and the Taipei City Government said after an inspection yesterday.
The final inspection was conducted between 10pm on Friday and yesterday morning. The Inspection committee listed 10 flaws after the overnight inspection and instructed the city government to fix the problems, including inconsistency in English signs and MRT transfer information as well as slip hazards at station exits.
Inspection committee member Lawrence Lan (藍武王) said the group also suggested the department should provide more information on the new transfer routes after the station goes into operation. Dongmen MRT station, located between Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Daan Park stations, is to serve as a transfer station for the Xinzhuang and Zhonghe lines.
Once the station goes into operation, Taipei MRT’s Tamsui Line and the Zhonghe Line are to run independently, with Guting station replacing Taipei Main Station as the new transfer station for passengers from Jhonghe (中和) heading to Taipei Main Station and destinations along the Tamsui Line.
Passengers in Jhonghe and Yonghe (永和) heading to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall station, National Taiwan University Hospital station and Taipei Main Station will be able to transfer at Guting station and at Zhongxiao Xinsheng station for destinations in eastern Taipei.
Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said yesterday that it has put up large posters at Guting station and other stations along the Zhonghe Line to promote the change of transfer stations and is to dispatch staff to provide guidance to passengers in need.
Commissioner of Taipei City’s Department of Rapid Transit Systems Chen Chun-liang (陳椿亮) said the flaws should be fixed within the next few days and that the department is seeking to put the station into operation by the end of this year.
According to the department, the route change will affect about 80,000 passengers, mostly on the Zhonghe Line. The number of passengers commuting through Taipei Main Station — which has a daily capacity of 300,000 to 400,000 people — is to be reduced by about 10,000 to 20,000 a day.
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