International travelers transiting at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport would from today be allowed to go shopping and dine in the airport’s departure areas, the airport operator said, as the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) eased some border restrictions imposed to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Taoyuan International Airport Corp said reopening borders is a global trend, and since reallowing transit passengers from June 15, the airport has continued to review its procedures to improve services and efficiency.
Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝), who heads the CECC, inspected the airport on July 22, while Deputy Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Yen-po (陳彥伯), the center’s deputy head, inspected it on Wednesday, the operator said, adding that several government agencies on July 27 sent representatives to the airport to discuss transit service improvements.
Photo: Ben Blanchard, Reuters
The operator said the eased curbs would bring more business opportunities to the airport, as transit passengers would no longer be directed to designated waiting rooms where they previously had to remain until boarding their connecting flight.
A time limit between flights of 12 hours would also be lifted, as well as a requirement that connecting flights be on a single ticket, it said.
However, the airline conducting the inbound flight would have to confirm the connection and provide check-through services for transit passengers’ luggage, it added.
The operator said COVID-19 prevention measures would remain in place to protect the safety of passengers and staff, including table dividers and checkerboard seating arrangements in dining areas.
Environmental cleaning and disinfection would be conducted in the airport’s departure and arrival areas, it said, adding that personal protective equipment would be provided to airport workers, for whom a health monitoring plan would be implemented according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s guidelines.
So far, 98.45 percent of airport workers have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine booster dose, and the airport is negotiating with hospitals to provide second doses to eligible staff members, it said.
Taiwan yesterday reported 21,771 new local cases of COVID-19 and 42 deaths from the disease, the CECC said.
The deceased ranged in age from their 40s to their 90s, and all had chronic illnesses or other severe diseases, it said, adding that 19 were unvaccinated against COVID-19.
Four of those who died were in their forties, two of whom had diabetes, one had a mental illness and one had a chronic kidney condition, it added.
Additional reporting by CNA
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
RSS