A “severe test” awaits commuters returning to work today after the nine-day Lunar New Year holiday, as a new road construction project is to begin following the demolition of a Zhongxiao Bridge (忠孝橋) onramp next to the Taipei Railway Station, former Taipei City Government Department of Transportation commissioner Jason Lin (林志盈) said yesterday.
“Forgive me for being pessimistic, but the New Taipei City Government already foresees traffic backups of up to 5km or even 10km on connecting roads to Zhongxiao Bridge, Zhongxing Bridge (中興橋) and Taipei Bridge at New Taipei City’s end,” he said on Facebook.
In Taipei, commuters should expect traffic jams on Civic Boulevard, the Huanhe Expressway and the above-mentioned three bridges, he added.
Photo: CNA
Lin said completion of the demolition project on Saturday would increase traffic on Taipei’s Zhongxiao E Road and Zhongxiao W Road, as two of three public works projects designed to alleviate such pressures have been delayed.
The opening of the MRT rail link from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, originally scheduled for 2014, would have increased public transportation available between Taipei Railway Station and New Taipei City’s Sanchong (三重), Sinjhuang (新莊), Wugu (五股) and Taishan (泰山) districts, Lin said.
Also incomplete is a dedicated bus lane near the Taipei West Bus Station on Zhongxiao W Road, which was meant to increase the efficiency of municipal buses, commercial buses using the highway toward Hsinchu City and vehicular traffic on Zhongxiao E Road and Zhongxiao W Road, Lin said.
Only one of three associated construction projects — the MRT Songshan Line — has been completed on time, which is not enough to avert congestion, he said.
While complementing city officials and workers for finishing the demolition project during the limited time available, Lin said that directing traffic would prove “as challenging as the demolition itself,” adding that the two delayed projects could not be completed sooner than next year.
Lin said he hopes he is proved wrong, but that, in his opinion, existing measures are inadequate to relieve traffic congestion, and called on the public to use public transportation and to pay attention to traffic reports to avoid congestion.
“We will know on Monday how long the traffic backups will get,” he said.
The Taipei Department of Transportation urged commuters to depart 20 minutes earlier to avoid delays, while Taipei Mayor Ko We-je (柯文哲) published a traffic diversion plan on Facebook.
“The traffic diversion plan has been released to save time for everyone as [today] is the first working day after the demolition” of the onramp, Ko said.
UPGRADE: The Kang Ding-class frigate is replacing its Chaparall missiles with Tien Chien II and Hua Yang VLS, which would provide it with long-range, 360° air defense Taiwan plans to produce 1,200 to 1,376 Hai Chien II missiles (海劍二, Sea Sword II) — also known as TC-2N — to serve as the standard air defense system of the navy’s surface combatant fleet, a source said yesterday. Last week, the Hai Chien II, the naval version of the Tien Kung II missile (天劍二, Sky Sword II), completed a live-fire test in waters off the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology’s Jiupeng facility (九鵬) in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). The MIM72 Chaparral and other dated air defense missiles that currently arm Taiwanese ships have inadequate range to combat Chinese
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, returned to Taiwan last night after being deported from the US. She is to stand trial in Taiwan for charges involving embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said it took her into custody at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and would first question her before transferring her to the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. She was arrested upon disembarking a flight from San Francisco that landed shortly before 7pm. Liou absconded to the US in 2019 after jumping bail
RSS