The director of the Department of Railways and Highways (DRH) yesterday defended himself after being quoted in the local media as saying on Sunday that “being stuck in traffic was a kind of blessing.”
Chi Wen-jong (祁文中) said that his comments had been misunderstood, adding that he meant if one has to be stuck in traffic, instead of getting irritated one could think about the fact that having so many cars out on trips was a sign of an improving economy.
“A major reason for the jams in the Hsuehshan Tunnel was there were too many cars; another reason was there were a lot of breakdowns or minor accidents,” Chi said.
The accidents were mainly a result of motorists switching lanes or driving on the shoulder and cutting into the traffic lane in front of them, he said.
“When stuck in traffic, drivers should stay calm and follow the car in front of them, so that traffic will flow smoothly,” Chi said.
“While solving traffic problems is the responsibility of transportation authorities such as the DRH and the tourism bureau, motorists can try adjusting to the situation because the more agitated they are, the more likely they are to cut into traffic and cause accidents,” he said.
Asked if he would apologize for his statement, which drew criticism from a number of transportation academics and the public, Chi said he would apologize because the Ministry of Transportation and Communications had not done enough to prevent the traffic jams.
“I apologize that the traffic jams affected the public's mood during their travel,” he said.
“There is room for improvement. We will hold a self-evaluation meeting after the long weekend and welcome interested academics to take part in the discussion,” he said.
Chi said, however, that he could not take back what he had said.
Drawing from his own experience driving from Hualien to Taipei, Chi said: “I told myself that while traffic jams are bad, it's a good thing that there are so many cars on the road during the holiday. It means the economy has improved.”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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