Taipei County Commissioner Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said yesterday that the decision to abort the construction of direct railway links between CKS International Airport and Taipei will severely affect the county's developments.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications conducted the bidding process of the railway project according to the build-operate-transfer model, which means the government will lend private companies state-owned land for them to build and run governmental constructions while the companies will fork out for the construction costs. The private companies will then return the ownership of the land and construction projects to the government after a certain period of time.
Three companies joined the bidding process of the project, with EverTransit International Development Corp coming out on top.
The corporation signed a contract with the ministry in July 1998. The timetable to construct the railway was delayed because of difficulties in land confiscation and the corporation's financial difficulties.
The ministry announced the corporation had lost the right to build the links at the end of last year because it could not afford the costs of the project.
The railway is designed to link Taipei Main Station and CKS International Airport, passing through Taipei City, Taipei County and Taoyuan County.
"Aborting the project will not only affect Taipei County's many developments, but will also be a serious blow to the county's financial situation," Su said.
"I will request a meeting with Premier Yu Shyi-kun on Jan. 6 and explain to him the difficulties our county is facing," Su said, adding that he hopes the Executive Yuan will be able to solve the problem.
The Taipei County government had planned to build an industrial park along part of the railway.
"We have been preparing for the construction for six years. The central government hardly realizes how serious a matter this is," said Su.
Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) also lent his support to Su's opposition to the project's cancellation.
"Su has voiced the concerns of Taipei citizens," Ma said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Ling-shan (林陵三) said he has concerns the county's construction plans along the link will be affected.
"Although EverTransit could not afford to build the railway, the ministry will ask whether other companies want to take over," Lin said.
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