A NT$49.2 billion (US$1.5 billion) government project to improve the Suhua Highway (Highway No. 9) along the nation’s east coast is expected to be completed by 2019, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said.
The project, aimed at improving road safety and reducing driving times between Yilan County’s Suao (蘇澳) and Hualien County, is divided into three sections: Suao to Dongao (東澳); Nanao (南澳) to Heping (和平); and Hejhong (和中) to Hualien’s Dacingshuei (大清水), according to a statement presented to the legislature about the status of transportation projects in eastern Taiwan
The highway is the main road connecting southern Yilan to Hualien, and its winding, narrow roads overlooking the Pacific Ocean are the scene of frequent accidents and are vulnerable to landslides.
Calls for improvement gained urgency in 2010 after torrential rains from Typhoon Megi triggered lethal landslides that killed 26 people traveling on the road.
Meanwhile, the Taiwan Railways Administration has purchased 136 Puyuma express trains since 2001 to increase passenger capacity along the eastern railway line and plans to purchase 600 intercity passenger cars over the next decade to boost railway capacity, according to the statement.
Taiwan is stepping up plans to create self-sufficient supply chains for combat drones and increase foreign orders from the US to counter China’s numerical superiority, a defense official said on Saturday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, the official said the nation’s armed forces are in agreement with US Admiral Samuel Paparo’s assessment that Taiwan’s military must be prepared to turn the nation’s waters into a “hellscape” for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Paparo, the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, reiterated the concept during a Congressional hearing in Washington on Wednesday. He first coined the term in a security conference last
Prosecutors today declined to say who was questioned regarding alleged forgery on petitions to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators, after Chinese-language media earlier reported that members of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Youth League were brought in for questioning. The Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau confirmed that two people had been questioned, but did not disclose any further information about the ongoing investigation. KMT Youth League members Lee Hsiao-liang (李孝亮) and Liu Szu-yin (劉思吟) — who are leading the effort to recall DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) and Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) — both posted on Facebook saying: “I
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,900) for advertisements that exceeded its approved business scope and ordered the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license would be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter supervision of Chinese e-commerce platforms and more stringent measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan as US President Donald Trump’s administration cracks down on origin laundering. The legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday met to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report on the matter. Democratic Progressive Party