Travel time to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport during peak flight hours is expected to increase by 20 minutes after construction for Terminal Three begins in July, the Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said.
TIAC senior vice president Wen Yung-sung (溫永松) said the construction involves relocating an important taxiway connecting the airport’s northern and southern runways and building a new taxiway that allows two-way traffic.
Wen said the construction is to be implemented in two phases. Between July 1 and May next year, part of Hangzhan S Road (航站南站) — the entrance to the airport from Freeway No. 2 — is to be closed for construction.
During this period, Wen said travelers will be asked to enter and exit the airport using Hangzhan N Road (航站北路), which is the current exit for the airport and has already been expanded to accommodate more traffic.
In the meantime, the speed limit on Hangzhan N Road is to be reduced to between 70kph and 50kph.
Travel time to the airport during the peak hours is estimated to increase by between 15 and 20 minutes, he said.
Because of the construction, travelers are advised to leave for the airport between two-and-a-half hours and three hours before the departure of their flights, Wen added.
Wen said the second phase of construction is scheduled to last from July next year to May 2018, during which the underground passage on Hangzhan N Road to the China Airlines Park is to be closed. Motor vehicles are to enter or exit through Hangzhan S Road instead, he said.
The entire construction is estimated to be finished by October, Wen said, adding that construction could end sooner if everything goes as planned. Once the construction is completed, cars would continue to enter the airport through Hangzhan S Road and exit through Hangzhan N Road.
The airport company estimated that the project would cost about NT$3 billion (US$92.8 million).
Asked why the construction would begin at the start of the summer vacation season, Wen said preparatory work needs to be completed before construction can begin.
Wen said the airport’s peak hours for outbound flights during the summer vacation or major national holidays are between 6am and 9am and between 11am and 3pm. Peak hours for inbound flights are between 3pm and 12am.
Wen added that the new taxiway would be 1,082m long, and that it would allow two-way traffic of airplanes and simultaneously accommodate two Airbus 380 aircraft, the world’s largest passenger jet.
After the new taxiway is opened, Wen said the old taxiway would be demolished to make way for Terminal Three and a multi-functional building. The construction of these two facilities is scheduled to finish by 2020, he added.
FAST TRACK? Chinese spouses must renounce their Chinese citizenship and pledge allegiance to Taiwan to gain citizenship, some demonstrators said Opponents and supporters of a bill that would allow Chinese spouses to obtain Taiwanese citizenship in four years instead of six staged protests near the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday morning. Those who oppose the bill proposed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) demanded that Chinese spouses be granted citizenship only after renouncing their Chinese citizenship, passing a citizenship test and pledging allegiance to Taiwan. The demonstrators, who were protesting at a side entrance to the Legislative Yuan on Jinan Road, were mostly members of the Taiwan Association of University Professors and other organizations advocating Taiwanese independence. Supporters of the bill, led
SILENT MAJORITY: Only 1 percent of Chinese rejected all options but war to annex Taiwan, while one-third viewed war as unacceptable, a university study showed Many Chinese are more concerned with developments inside their country than with seeking unification with Taiwan, al-Jazeera reported on Friday. Although China claims Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to annex it, by force if necessary, 23-year-old Chinese Shao Hongtian was quoted by al-Jazeera as saying that “hostilities are not the way to bring China and Taiwan together.” “I want unification to happen peacefully,” Shao said. Al-Jazeera said it changed Shao’s name to respect his wish for anonymity. If peaceful unification is not possible, Shao said he would prefer “things to remain as they are,” adding that many of his friends feel
Taiwan has “absolute air superiority” over China in its own airspace, Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on Monday, amid concern over whether Taipei could defend itself against a military incursion by Beijing. Po made the remarks in response to a question from Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) on whether Taiwan would have partial or complete air superiority if Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) warplanes were to enter Taiwan’s airspace. Po, a retired pilot, said that the Taiwanese military has “absolute air superiority” over PLA
A shipment of basil pesto imported by Costco Wholesale Taiwan from the US in the middle of last month was intercepted at the border after testing positive for excessive pesticide residue, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. Samples taken from a shipment of the Kirkland Signature brand of basil pesto imported by Costco contained 0.1 milligrams per kilogram of ethylene oxide, exceeding the non-detectable limit. Ethylene oxide is a carcinogenic substance that can be used as a pesticide. The 674kg shipment of basil pesto would either be destroyed or returned to its country of origin, as is the procedure for all