All train and intercity bus passengers must wear a mask and have their temperature checked either at a station or aboard, Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday.
Masks must also be worn at highway rest stops, Lin said.
The Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSR) has installed thermal imaging cameras at the entrances to all its 12 stations, and the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) has installed them at its 239 stations, the THSR and TRA said in separate statements.
Photo: Ho Cheng-hsu, Taipei Times
Temperatures are to be checked when entering any Chunghwa Post Co offices and masks must be worn, the company said.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) yesterday proposed a relief package for drivers of taxi and tour buses that would allow drivers to apply for a monthly subsidy of NT$10,000 (US$330.50) for up to three months.
The package, intended to provide relief to drivers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, would cost an estimated NT$3.45 billion, the ministry said.
It has the support of the Presidential Office and the Executive Yuan, but would not be finalized until a detailed report is made by the Directorate-General of Highways and approved by the Executive Yuan, the ministry said.
Lin has been communicating with the Presidential Office and Executive Yuan to secure the funding, the ministry said.
There are an estimated 16,000 tour bus drivers and 100,000 taxi drivers nationwide who would be eligible for the subsidies, it said.
A separate subsidy package recently implemented by the ministry provides taxi drivers with a NT$2,000 monthly stipend for fuel for up to six months, and a subsidy of up to NT$74,000 for tour bus drivers to cover fuel costs, reduced licensing fees and interest relief for bus loans.
Bus drivers can also apply for up to NT$110,000 to cover driver training courses under that package.
Vice president-elect William Lai (賴清德), a former premier, wrote on Facebook that he has been in touch with Lin in the past few days, and he thought that taxi drivers should have more than a NT$2,000 monthly fuel stipend, because they have been greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has asked the Executive Yuan to discuss the issue, and it was expected to make an announcement soon, he wrote.
Additional reporting by Ho Yu-hua
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai
RSS