The Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) yesterday said that solar panels would soon be installed on the top of its depot in Chaozhou (潮州) in Pingtung County, in accordance with the government’s goal of having 1 million “sunny rooftops” across the nation.
The national railway operator said that it would hold a two-stage public auction to find a contractor for the project, adding that the first stage of the auction would be held on Aug 28 to review the qualifications of interested bidders.
The TRA would provide the rooftops and the contractor would be in charge of construction, operation and maintenance of the solar energy system, the operator said.
The TRA would receive a certain percentage of the profits after the contractor sells the energy generated to Taiwan Power Co.
The TRA estimated that the solar power system could generate at least 5 million kilowatt-hours per year on average and help reduce the nation’s carbon emissions by about 2,645 tonnes per year.
It would also help generate revenue of at least NT$36 million (US$1.2 million) over the next 20 years.
The Taoyuan Metro Corp (桃園捷運) said that it would introduce a new combination pass on Thursday, allowing people who want to watch Summer Universiade games to transfer from the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Access MRT System to the Taipei MRT System.
The Universiade is to open on Saturday next week.
Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), Taoyuan Metro Corp chairman Liu Kun-i (劉坤億) and company president Chen Kai-ling (陳凱凌) yesterday participated in a torch-passing event in Taoyuan.
Chen said there are 21 stations on the airport MRT line.
People can access the Taipei MRT System by transferring at Taipei Main Station (A1) or Sanchung Station (A2), which leads to the venues in Taipei.
People can access the venues where archery, swimming and water polo events are to be held by taking the airport MRT system to National Taiwan Sport University Station (A7), Chen added.
Delegations can reach the Athletes’ Village by disembarking at Linkou Station (A9), which is near the village, Chen said.
Passengers using the airport line can also visit the shopping areas and scenic attractions near the airport MRT stations, he added.
In addition to the new combination pass, people can also buy one-day passes, he said.
A NT$39 receipt for two bottles of tea at a FamilyMart was among the NT$10 million (US $312,969) special prize winners in the January-February uniform invoice lottery. FamilyMart said that two NT$10 million-winning receipts were issued at its stores, as well as two NT$2 million grand prizes and three NT$200,000 first prizes. The two NT$10 million receipts were issued at stores in Pingtung County and Yilan County’s Dongshan Township (冬山). One winner spent just NT$39 on two bottles of tea, while another spent NT$80 on water, tea and coffee, the company said. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven reported three NT$10 million winners — in New Taipei
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on