The number of speeding motorists has increased as traffic volume on the nation’s freeways has fallen as much as 50 percent with people avoiding travel amid a nationwide level 3 COVID-19 alert, the Freeway Bureau said yesterday.
Freeway traffic has decreased 30 to 50 percent since May 19, when the Central Epidemic Command Center expanded the level 3 warning for COVID-19 from Taipei and New Taipei City to the entire nation, bureau data showed.
However, the number of speeding incidents in the second half of last month rose 24 percent from the second half of April, the bureau said.
Photo: CNA
The top 10 freeway sections where more motorists were found to have exceeded the speed limit by at least 60kph are mostly in northern Taiwan, including in Taoyuan near the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Jhungli (中壢) and Yangmei (楊梅) interchanges on the Sun Yat-sen Freeway (Freeway No. 1), as well as the section between the Sansia (三峽) and Yingge (鶯歌) interchanges in New Taipei City, and near the Wufong (霧峰) Interchange in Taichung on the Formosa Freeway (Freeway No. 3), the bureau said.
More than half of the incidents occurred between 11pm and 6am, the bureau said, adding that it has provided the data to the National Highway Police Bureau so it can crack down on speeding drivers.
People driving above or below freeway speed limits face fines of NT$3,000 to NT$6,000, according to Article 33 of the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例), the bureau said.
Article 43 stipulates that people caught driving 60kph above the speed limit or faster would be fined up to NT$24,000 and have their license suspended, the bureau said, adding that their license would be revoked if an offense results in a crash.
People caught racing would be fined NT$30,000 to NT$90,000 and immediately prohibited from driving, the bureau said, adding that their license would be revoked.
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