Beginning next month, 17 makeshift bridges and temporary road sections built after Typhoon Morakot struck in August last year will be managed through a three-tier monitoring system, the Directorate General of Highways (DGH) said.
DGH Secretary-General Mile Chen (陳茂男) said that sections falling under the first category include those between the 95km and the 103km marker on Provincial Highway 20 in Kaohsiung County’s Taoyuan Township (桃源) and between the 213km and 224km markers in Kaohsiung County’s Namasiya Township (那瑪夏).
“Both are temporary sections, and there are already risks associated with driving through them, even before the rainy season starts,” Chen said. “Entry to the road sections in this first category will be restricted when the rainy season begins next month.”
Chen said that restricted entry hours would run from 6am to 10pm. Only those with permits will be allowed to use these roads, including construction workers, police officers, fire department officials, healthcare service providers and local residents.
Included in the second category is a makeshift bridge in Pingtung County’s Wutai Township (霧台), the road section between Tongfu (同富) and Zihjhong (自忠) in Nantou County’s Sinyi Township (信義) and Lidao (利稻) section in Taitung County’s Haiduan Township (海端). Chen added that motorists passing through these areas would be required to leave their names and phone numbers, and that the restrictions would be put in place whenever the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) issues a heavy rain warning.
Listed under the third category are the remaining 12 makeshift bridges and temporary sections, which will only be closed when rainfall reaches extreme levels.
Lee Chung-chang (李忠璋), deputy director of the DGH’s maintenance division, said an alarm system connecting its bridge management system to CWB rainfall observation centers at different rivers is scheduled to be completed before the end of the month.
Lee said construction offices under the maintenance division have set threshold levels for rivers.
Taiwan would benefit from more integrated military strategies and deployments if the US and its allies treat the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea as a “single theater of operations,” a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said he made the assessment after two Japanese military experts warned of emerging threats from China based on a drill conducted this month by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command. Japan Institute for National Fundamentals researcher Maki Nakagawa said the drill differed from the
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
A rally held by opposition parties yesterday demonstrates that Taiwan is a democratic country, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that if opposition parties really want to fight dictatorship, they should fight it on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held a protest with the theme “against green communists and dictatorship,” and was joined by the Taiwan People’s Party. Lai said the opposition parties are against what they called the “green communists,” but do not fight against the “Chinese communists,” adding that if they really want to fight dictatorship, they should go to the right place and face
RSS