A call for tenders to create kiosks and indoor navigation systems to guide visitors inside Taipei Railway Station and facilitate evacuations during emergencies is to be launched next month, the Taipei City Government said yesterday.
The city government held a public hearing attended by IT firms to explain details of the bidding process.
The selected bidder would be required to deploy 8,000 to 13,000 indoor positioning devices, known as beacons, to give visitors directions in the railway station, as well as kiosks at eight locations, including Beimen MRT Station and Taipei City Mall, which are linked to the main station through underground passageways, guiding foreigners and other visitors to Taipei around the station, Taipei Traffic Engineering Office Liu Jui-lin (劉瑞麟) said.
By activating Bluetooth connections and an app on mobile devices, visitors would be able to open a map showing their location in the station and the way to their destination, such as underground shopping areas and the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) or High Speed Rail passenger platforms, Liu said.
The kiosks should be able to show users three-dimensional maps of all levels of the station, while electronic signs would be set up in the Beimen Station and Taipei Railway Station to inform people of the safest escape route in the case of an emergency, he said.
“The signs would be integrated. If there is smoke coming from Beimen, people need to know in which direction they should evacuate,” Liu said.
The project contractor is to be selected based on what value-added services bidders can provide the municipal government, which in turn would pay the contractor from revenue generated from two public parking lots on Civic Boulevard and firms who pay for advertisements in the app and in the station, he said.
“The routes in Taipei Railway Station are messy and people often get lost. So, the primary goal is to improve the signage,” Taipei Department of Transportation section head Chang Sheng-wan (張生萬) said.
Disaster prevention stations are to be established by the TRA at the behest of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications on the Taipei Railway Station’s second and third underground levels, Chang said.
The center is to integrate TRA, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp and High Speed Rail systems, thereby facilitating evacuation, he said.
GENSLER SURVEY: ‘Economic infrastructure is not enough. A city needs to inspire pride, offer moments of joy and foster a sense of belonging,’ the company said Taipei was named the city with the “highest staying power” in the world by US-based design and architecture firm Gensler. The Taiwanese capital earned the top spot among 65 cities across six continents with 64 percent of Taipei respondents in a survey of 33,000 people saying they wanted to stay in the city. Rounding out the top five were Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City (61 percent), Singapore (59 percent), Sydney (58 percent) and Berlin (51 percent). Sixth to 10th place went to Monterrey, Mexico; Munich, Germany; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Vancouver; and Seoul. Cities in the US were ranked separately, with Minneapolis first at
The Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association has cautioned Japanese travelers to be vigilant against pickpockets at several popular tourist spots in Taiwan, including Taipei’s night markets, the Yongkang Street area, Zhongshan MRT Station, and Jiufen (九份) in New Taipei City. The advisory, titled “Recent Development of Concerns,” was posted on the association’s Web site under its safety and emergency report section. It urges travelers to keep backpacks fully zipped and carried in front, with valuables placed at the bottom of the bag. Visitors are advised to be especially mindful of their belongings when taking photos or speaking on the phone, avoid storing wallets and
Scoot announced yesterday that starting in October, it would increase flights between Taipei and Japan’s Narita airport and Hokkaido, and between Singapore and Taipei. The low-cost airline, a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, also said it would launch flights to Chiang Rai in Thailand, Okinawa and Tokyo’s Haneda airport between December and March next year. Flights between Singapore and Chiang Rai would begin on Jan. 1, with five flights per week operated by an Embraer E190-E2 aircraft, Scoot said. Flights between Singapore and Okinawa would begin on Dec. 15, with three flights per week operated by Airbus A320 aircraft, the airline said. Services between Singapore
ENDORSING TAIWAN: Honduran presidential candidate Nasry Afura said that Honduras was ‘100 times better off’ when it was allied with Taipei The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it would explore the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations with Honduras based on the principle of maintaining national interests and dignity. The ministry made the remarks in response to reporters’ questions regarding an article titled: “Will Taiwan Regain a Diplomatic Ally?” published in The Diplomat on Saturday. The article said Honduras’ presidential election in November could offer Taiwan the chance to regain an ally, as multiple candidates have promoted re-establishing diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Honduras severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in March 2023 in favor of Beijing, but since switching its diplomatic recognition,
RSS