Fri, Oct 23, 2009 page2

• Bus station neighbors protest

  FOUR STRIKES Noise and air pollution persist around the station night and day, while limited capacity and only one exit failed to ease traffic congestion in the area

  • By Mo Yan-chih / STAFF REPORTER
  • • 
    • 
    • 

  Shouting “we are the biggest victims,” about 30 people who live near the recently opened Taipei Bus Station yesterday protested against what they called serious air pollution and non-stop noise generated by heavy traffic around the station, urging the Taipei City Government to improve the situation.

  Several Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City councilors and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei City Councilor Chen Yu-mei (陳玉梅) joined the protesters in front of the Taipei City Council to challenge the design of the station.

  “Residents and city councilors warned the city government about the problems long before the station opened, but the station still functions poorly and affects the lives of local residents,” Chen said.

  

  Passengers wait for shuttle buses following a network system breakdown on the MRT Wenshan-Neihu Line in Taipei yesterday. Operations on the MRT line were suspended for 40 minutes from 9:17am yesterday.

  PHOTO: CHIEN JUNG-FONG, TAIPEI TIMES

  Traffic volume at the station exceeds 5,000 vehicles per day, with the exhaust gas and sound of engines affect Huayin Street day and night, damaging the quality of life of local residents and forcing many to seek medical help, she said.

  Local borough chief Chen Cheng-hsian (陳正賢) demanded that the city government install noise and air quality monitors inside and outside the station, prohibit buses from entering the Huayin business circle, ban scooter parking on Huayin Street and offer preferential parking to residents as compensation.

  Accepting the petition from the borough chief, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) said the city government had been working with the station operator to decrease noise and air pollution.

  The city government and the contractor will move the taxi waiting area to an underground floor of the station next month, and complete sound-proofing by next March, Hau said.

  Located at the intersection of Chengde Road and Huayin Street, the station opened in August and serves as the main transportation hub for 10 bus companies running 39 routes to Ilan County and cities, as well as counties south of Hsinchu.

  Five other bus companies providing 10 routes to Taoyuan County and cities and counties north of Taoyuan will continue to use the old bus station on Chongqing N Road.

  Local residents have been protesting against the noise and air pollution around the station since it opened.

  DPP Taipei City Councilor Chien Yu-yen (簡余晏) and Lee Wen-ying (李文英) also urged the city government to resolve the issue of insufficient capacity at the station.

  The bus station was built to ease traffic around Chengde Road and Civil Boulevard and solve the problem of illegal parking on Chengde Road as all major bus stations were located there before.

  However, the situation has only worsened since the bus station opened because there is only one exit for all the buses, and the station can only accommodate about 400 buses an hour, Chien said.

  Hau acknowledged that the capacity of the station was insufficient, and promised to present solutions as soon as possible.
• Most Popular

  • 1

    Chinese carrier group entered Japanese waters

  • 2

    Taiwan denies hacking, as China issues bounties

  • 3

    Taiwan in Time: Snapshots of early Japanese-era Taipei

  • 4

    Think tank hosts war games in Taipei

  • 5

    Students rescued from Cambodia