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.
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) yesterday said that private-sector refiners are willing to stop buying Russian naphtha should the EU ask them to, after a group of non-governmental organizations, including the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), criticized the nation’s continued business with the country. While Taiwan joined the US and its Western allies in putting broad sanctions on Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, it did not explicitly ban imports of naphtha, a major hard-currency earner for Russia. While state-owned firms stopped importing Russian oil in 2023, there is no restriction on private companies to
President William Lai (賴清德) is expected to announce a new advanced “all-domain” air defense system to better defend against China when he gives his keynote national day speech today, four sources familiar with the matter said. Taiwan is ramping up defense spending and modernizing its armed forces, but faces a China that has a far larger military and is adding its own advanced new weapons such as stealth fighter jets, aircraft carriers and a huge array of missiles. Lai is expected to announce the air defense system dubbed “Taiwan Dome” in his speech this morning, one of the sources said. The system
RSS