President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) presided over the inauguration of the New Cishan Bridge in Greater Kaohsiung yesterday and expressed hope that it would help to boost the local economy and tourism.
Ma hailed the quick completion of the 535m long, 22.2m wide single-tower balanced cantilevered bridge connecting Cishan (旗山) and Meinong (美濃) districts at a cost of about NT$600 million (US$20 million).
Construction of the bridge, which is built on the foundations of two older bridges, was completed five months ahead of schedule, despite being interrupted by Typhoon Morakot when it ravaged southern Taiwan in August 2009.
Photo: CNA
The project is one of 47 bridge renewal programs carried out by the government since Ma assumed office in May 2008. Construction of all 47 new bridges is scheduled to be completed by the end of next month.
Accompanied by Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) and Minister of Transportation and Communications Mao Chi-kuo (毛治國), the president also toured the old street of Cishan and sampled some cheesecake with banana, one of the area’s principal crops.
Later in the day, Ma chaired a ground-breaking ceremony for Siaolin (小林) No. 2, where 120 permanent houses will be built on a 5.81 hectare plot of land for the survivors of landslides triggered by Morakot, which destroyed the original village.
Morakot was the worst typhoon to hit southern Taiwan in more than 50 years and the government’s bungled response in the immediate aftermath sent Ma’s approval rating plunging.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
ENHANCING EFFICIENCY: The apron can accommodate 16 airplanes overnight at Taoyuan airport while work on the third runway continues, the transport minister said A new temporary overnight parking apron at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is to start operating on Friday next week to boost operational efficiency while the third runway is being constructed, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The apron — one of the crucial projects in the construction of the third runway — can accommodate 16 aircraft overnight at the nation’s largest international airport, Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told reporters while inspecting the new facility yesterday morning. Aside from providing the airport operator with greater flexibility in aircraft parking during the third runway construction,
American climber Alex Honnold is to attempt a free climb of Taipei 101 today at 9am, with traffic closures around the skyscraper. To accommodate the climb attempt and filming, the Taipei Department of Transportation said traffic controls would be enforced around the Taipei 101 area. If weather conditions delay the climb, the restrictions would be pushed back to tomorrow. Traffic controls would be in place today from 7am to 11am around the Taipei 101 area, the department said. Songzhi Road would be fully closed in both directions between Songlian Road and Xinyi Road Sec 5, it said, adding that bidirectional traffic controls would
RSS