The removal of the Gongguan roundabout to make way for a controlled intersection might be finished within one month, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Shu-chuan (李四川) said yesterday.
The project, originally scheduled to take 65 days, is likely to be shortened significantly thanks to the cooperation of eight ready-mix concrete plants, Lee said during an onsite inspection.
According to the Taipei City Government, the first stage involves filling in the underground bus lane that runs beneath the roundabout at the intersection of Roosevelt Road and Keelung Road. That part of the project is estimated to take 44 days, with the work being carried out from 8am to 6pm and from 11pm to 6am daily.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei City Government
After that stage, the demolition of the roundabout would be completed in 21 days, on a daily work schedule of 11pm to 6am.
Since the project began at 11:35pm on Friday, buses that previously used the underpass are now running on the surface lanes instead, he said.
As traffic congestion is expected in the area for the duration of the project, commuters are advised to take the MRT, Lee said.
In March, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) announced that the city government would remove the Gongguan roundabout, saying that it had been the leading site in Taipei for traffic incidents each year since 2018.
The project began yesterday amid protests by civic groups, and students from National Taiwan University, National Taiwan Normal University and National Chengchi University, many of whom commute by bus in the area. The protesters dispersed at about 12:30pm.
Lee said the city government expects criticism of the project, but is committed to ensuring public safety.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
RSS