The Ministry of Transportation and Communications raised the speed limit south of the Tuchen Inter-change of National Highway 3 from 100kph to 110kph yesterday.
National Highway 3 runs between Keelung in Taipei County and Linbian in Pingtung County.
In December, the ministry announced an increase in the speed limit on National Freeway 1, or the Sun Yat-sen Freeway, which links Keelung and Kaohsiung, to 100kph.
The speed limit on the Sun Yat-sen Freeway varied from 90kph to 100kph prior to the ministry's announcement.
The ministry said last October it would consider raising the speed limit from 100kph to 120kph on the Sun Yat-sen Freeway in response to legislators' requests.
"Our research team will look into this proposal. We will complete our research within six months and decide whether the speed limit can be raised," said Lin Dah-yuh (林大煜), director-general of the ministry's Institute of Transportation.
KMT Legislator Chi Kuo-tung (
"In some countries, there are no speed limits on freeways at all. Vehicles are far more advanced than before. Road safety facilities have also greatly improved. People can drive faster nowadays," he said.
"The Sun Yat-sen Freeway was constructed more than 20 years ago and the speed limit has only been raised once, from 90kph to 100kph," Chi said. "A lot of drivers complain about the low speed limit on the national freeway."
While PFP Legislator Chung Chao-ho (
"The reason we keep the speed limit at 100kph is because accidents tend to occur at exits and on winding sections of the road," Lin said.
"I cannot say whether the speed limit will be raised again. Last year, when the speed limit was increased from 90kph to 100kph, many academics suggested that 100kph was the upper limit," Lin said.
The Sun Yat-sen Freeway was completed in 1978.
An official with the Taiwan Area National Freeway Bureau said that the freeway was designed to accommodate a speed limit of 120kph.
The fine for violating the speed limit on the freeway is NT$3,000.
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