The Ministry of Transportation and Communications has established a transportation technology and industry board with the Ministry of Economic Affairs to facilitate innovation in and transformation of the transportation industry by integrating resources from government agencies and academia, Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Thursday.
“We have prepared for three months for the establishment of the board, during which time we have chosen 15 high-tech industries related to transportation to be developed,” Lin told reporters at a forum on the development of smart electric scooters.
“Board members are to meet every three months. When there is no meeting, task forces can tackle industry issues. This would increase communication between industries, academia and government agencies,” he said.
Photo: CNA
In addition to smart electric scooters, his ministry plans to develop services involving uncrewed aerial vehicles, self-driving vehicles, Internet of Things in vehicles in the 5G era, offshore wind power and rail technology, he said.
Its regulations should be in sync with the development of smart electric scooters, Lin said.
More importantly, both ministries should create an environment in which the use of the scooters should be regulated from the perspective of industrial development, he said.
“We are also looking forward to forming a ‘national team’ to play at the ‘world cup’ of exporting products,” Lin said, adding that many industry operators have high expectations of the partnership between the two ministries.
The transportation ministry has compiled a large database of how motorcycles are used and automobile safety research, Lin said, adding that it has been working with three universities to gather Internet of vehicles-related data from 7,000 motorcycles.
Preserving and managing this information would be crucial in the development of smart electric scooters, he said.
Other issues would emerge with increased use of new vehicle technologies, including parking management, data collection, safety and insurance, he said.
Resolving these issues might require a different way of thinking about transportation services and management, which would present more business opportunities, he said.
The transportation ministry should draft rules in advance by taking into account industrial trends, human behavior and laws in other countries, so that industry operators would not feel restricted, he said.
Encouraging the development and use of smart electric scooters does not contradict his ministry’s policy of promoting public transportation, Lin said.
“The public transport system is important, but motorcycles remain an irreplaceable part of the transportation network in a densely populated nation. We hope that motorcycles become smarter and greener,” he said.
Locally made electric scooters are popular among young Taiwanese because they are equipped with powerful motors, Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin (沈榮津) said, adding that the nation has manufacturers of electric motors, batteries and battery management systems for scooters, as well as developers of motorcycle apps.
Apps can offer personalized services, such as reminding people to slow down, finding parking spots and sending birthday greetings, Shen said, adding that component manufacturers could form a supply chain for electric scooters.
Taiwan definitely has the potential to compete in the “world cup” of the electric scooter industry, as internal demand is close to 1 million per year, Shen said.
“The market size gives manufacturers many opportunities to practice,” he said, adding that they could export electric scooters to India, Indonesia, Malaysia and other countries in the government’s New Southbound Policy,” he said.
Earlier this week, Shen said that economic ministry has plans to spend an additional NT$174.6 million (US$5.65 million) to subsidize electric scooters at NT$10,000 per purchase.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard