The Chiang Wei-shui Memorial Freeway (Freeway No. 5), which connects Taipei and Yilan, is always jammed solid during extended public holidays. During this year’s Dragon Boat Festival, a new record was set when it was jammed with traffic for 32 consecutive hours.
To avoid a repeat performance during the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday weekend, Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) provided a financial incentive for the public to use public transport, and encouraged drivers to use the Beiyi Highway as an alternative route. However, these measures would have a limited effect.
To solve the problem and provide a long-term boost to Yilan County’s economy, Lin and a number of Yilan dignitaries have been promoting extending the High-Speed Rail (HSR) line to the county.
Irrespective of how many new roads and railway lines are opened, if the government wants to truly solve the root of the problem of traffic congestion, it must implement “user pays” tolls to encourage people to use public transport instead of driving.
There are several ways this could be done:
First, the Yilan and Hualien county governments must provide a convenient shuttle bus service to provide a high-density, convenient, safe and comfortable link between tourist attractions, which would encourage visitors to use public transportation.
In Keelung, the two-year-old city-link shuttle bus commissioned by Keelung Mayor Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) has proved to be a safe and convenient solution that other city and county-level governments could emulate.
Second, motorists must get used to the “user pays” concept. Singapore’s electronic toll collection scheme uses overhead gantries at entry points to its Central Area that automatically collect tolls from drivers, charging more during peak hours.
London’s congestion charge system charges ￡15 (US$19.40) per day to enter the city, while drivers who use a private vehicle to commute from Manassas, Virginia, to Washington using the Dulles Toll Road must ensure that their vehicle is full of passengers to access the road.
The Hsuehshan Tunnel (雪山隧道) toll charge varies according to different time periods, such as rush hour and weekends, while electronic toll collection schemes charge different tolls according to data, with charges increasing during peak periods or public holidays.
To deal with traffic congestion during extended public holidays, some have suggested increasing the tolls on Freeway No. 5 10-fold, using price to reduce people’s willingness to drive, which is an idea worth exploring.
Third, in the next two decades, transportation is to undergo a transformation similar to the industrial revolution. Electric and driverless vehicles and car-sharing systems will reshape government transportation and infrastructure policy, along with a global move toward carbon and energy consumption reductions to tackle climate change.
Fourth, extending the HSR service to Yilan County would take approximately 10 years to complete and could cost nearly NT$100 billion (US$3.43 billion). Such a major project would inevitably have a negative impact on the environment.
The Hsuehshan Tunnel was necessary, but it also caused a great deal of controversy within Taiwan’s feng shui community, as some believe it broke Yilan’s “dragon vein.” It could be argued that extending the HSR would once again break the area’s “dragon vein.” It is not necessary, and the land set aside for its construction should be left to nature.
Taking into consideration the economic benefits, environmental impact and sustainable development, the Taipei-Yilan HSR extension should not go ahead.
Lawrence Chien is an English and Japanese-speaking guide.
Translated by Edward Jones
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