Minister of Transportation and Communications Mao Chi-kuo (毛治國) yesterday said the ministry would spend three months evaluating various options for the rates of the new freeway toll fee, adding that the ministry would decide the date of implementation once the evaluation is complete.
The current system requires freeway drivers to pay a fee whenever they drive through toll booths, yet some freeway users may never have to drive through a toll booth and hence never pay any fees. To this end, the new “pay as you go” policy would require all freeway users to pay a toll based on the distance traveled.
The bureau has proposed three possible rate options: The first will not allow freeway users to drive a kilometer toll-free, with each car being charged NT$0.82 per kilometer traveled. The second would give each driver a toll-free distance of 10km per day, charging NT$1 for each kilometer thereafter. The third would increase the daily toll-free distance to 20km, but also push the rate up to NT$1.20 per kilometer if a person drives between 20km and 200km. The rate would drop to NT$0.90 after they pass the 200km mark.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Mao said the current system asks one-third of medium and long-distance freeway drivers to subsidize two-thirds of those who do not have to pay fees, which he said was unfair.
He said the ministry has been formulating the “pay as you go” policy under different administrations, which shows that the policy has gained support from both of the major parties.
Mao said the new policy would not increase total revenue for the Freeway Construction Fund, which was NT$22 billion (US$750.8 million) last year. The point of the policy was that freeway users who did not have to pay toll fees in the past would have to pay them now, relieving medium and long-distance drivers of the burden of subsidizing short-distance drivers.
“The three different rates have been presented for everyone to consider and we are seeking to reach a consensus on the chosen option,” he said. “We will not immediately announce which one of options will be used.”
Based on the bureau’s analysis, drivers who have never had to pay toll fees in the past would pay between NT$10.20 and NT$18.60 on average per trip, allowing those who have been paying to potentially save between NT$20.10 and NT$47.90 per trip.
Though the ministry said the new policy was fairer, it drew criticism from legislators and regular users of freeways running from east to west, including freeways No. 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10. The main reason for the protests was that drivers on these freeways are currently not required to pay toll fees.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) called for an indefinite postponement of the policy and the reclassification of the current national highways to protect the financially vulnerable.
“The DPP caucus does not oppose the tolling mechanism, but the policy would likely be a punishment for residents in the rural areas before a coordinated set of supporting measures is formulated,” DPP Legislator Pan Men-an (潘孟安) told a press conference.
The caucus insisted that the measures should be postponed until supplementary measures are in place and the economy picks up, he said.
It also called for re-classifying national highways by designating east-west Highways No. 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 as expressways so that they would not be included in the tolling scheme.
Unlike Highways No. 1, 3, 5 and 7, which connect northern and southern Taiwan, the east-west national highways connect rural and urban areas, and the majority of road users are farmers and blue-collar workers, who have to transport agricultural produce or commute between their hometowns and cities, DPP Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) said.
DPP legislators Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉), who represented Greater Kaohsiung, Liu Chao-hao (劉櫂豪) of Taitung County and Chen Ou-po (陳歐珀) of Yilan County, all said the policy would affect local people’s livelihood.
Furthermore, DPP Legislator Lee Kun-tse (李昆澤) accused the ministry of disregarding a resolution proposed by the Transportation Committee, which demanded the reclassification of the East-West highways.
DPP Legislator Wei Ming-ku (魏明谷) proposed that the plan be postponed until GDP growth surpasses 6 percent, the unemployment rate is lower than 3 percent and national income per capita exceeds than US$30,000 (NT$879,000).
Mao responded that the nation would be mired in a NT$100 billion debt if freeways were changed to express ways.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
STAY COOL: The HPA recommended that people stay hydrated, use air-conditioning or fans while indoors, wear loose-fitting clothes and walk in the shade while outdoors Employers must implement measures such as installing cooling equipment, and providing drinking water and rest breaks for outdoor workers starting from Monday next week, the Taipei Department of Labor said on Sunday. Employers who fail to comply could face fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法), the department said. Businesses in Taipei employing fewer than 100 workers, as well as registered self-employed workers with labor insurance coverage, could receive on-site assessments and guidance from occupational safety consultants to help them apply for central government subsidies to implement or improve heat-protection measures, it said. Under the Ministry of
RSS