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Minimum speed in Hsuehshan Tunnel may be increased

Having already raised the speed limit inside the Hsuehshan Tunnel, the Taiwan Area National Freeway Bureau is considering increasing the minimum speed in the tunnel, a bureau official said yesterday.

The new minimum speed could take effect next month if the Ministry of Transportation and Communications approves the plan.

Kang Jhy-fu (康志福), a section chief at the bureau, said increasing the speed limit to 80kph had helped to improve traffic flow inside the tunnel, but there were still traffic jams outside the tunnel on holidays.

The bureau hopes to improve the situation by increasing the minimum speed inside the tunnel, he said.

Internationally, Kang said, the minimum speed on freeways is usually set at 60kph. He said the bureau would propose to the ministry that the minimum speed limit inside the tunnel be raised from 50kph to 60kph.

Early this month, the bureau increased the speed limit on National Freeway No. 1 (the Sun Yat-sen Freeway) from 100kph to 110kph -- but only on the section between Miaoli County's Da-an River Bridge (大安溪橋) and the Nanzih (楠梓) Interchange in Kaohsiung County.

It also raised the speed limit for the Hsuehshan Tunnel section of National Freeway No. 5 (the Chiang Wei-shui Freeway) from 70kph to 80kph.

Officials said the minimum speed on freeways in western Taiwan should also be increased.

They said the minimum speed should be raised from 50kph to 60kph because the speed limit had already been increased to 110kph.
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