The government is to invest NT$72.7 billion (US$2.38 billion) in urban and rural infrastructure over the next two years, sources with knowledge of the matter said.
If passed, the urban and rural infrastructure plan would be the single largest item in the special budget allocated to the second phase of the Forward-looking Infrastructure Development Program, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Premier William Lai (賴清德) has already approved a NT$227.1 billion budget for the second phase of the program and the proposed budget is to be sent to the Legislative Yuan for review next month, they added.
The first phase of the program — which runs from September last year to December this year — received NT$107.1 billion, NT$35 billion of which was allocated to urban and rural infrastructure.
The second phase — from next year to 2020 — is to include NT$12.2 billion toward green energy infrastructure development, NT$27.8 billion for digital infrastructure, NT$59.3 billion for water infrastructure, NT$42.2 billion for railway development, NT$72.7 billion for urban and rural infrastructure and NT$12.9 billion toward childcare, food safety and human resource development, the sources said.
As part of the new plan, the government is to spend NT$3 billion each year for two years to revitalize municipal centers, the sources said.
A total of NT$10.6 billion is to be allocated next year and NT$10.4 billion in 2020 to improve road quality, reduce the need for road repairs, improve road safety and improve the overall aesthetics of thoroughfares, bringing the two-year total to NT$21 billion, they said.
The government plans to spend NT$4.1 billion per year for two years to develop locally oriented industrial parks, they said.
The government also plans to spend NT$3.5 billion next year and NT$2.9 billion in 2020 to create sports and leisure facilities, such as recreation centers, swimming pools and bicycle paths, they said.
It is to allocate NT$2.4 billion next year and NT$2.2 billion in 2020 to developing public service centers, including for long-term care, they added.
Under the plan, the government would also spend NT$5.8 billion over the next two years on seismic strengthening and reconstruction of publicly owned buildings, they said.
The government would invest NT$800 million next year and NT$4 million in 2020 to develop a Hakka Romantic Avenue along Provincial Highway No. 3 as part of its efforts to preserve and promote Hakka culture, they said.
INFRASTRUCTURE: Work on the second segment, from Kaohsiung to Pingtung, is expected to begin in 2028 and be completed by 2039, the railway bureau said Planned high-speed rail (HSR) extensions would blanket Taiwan proper in four 90-minute commute blocs to facilitate regional economic and livelihood integration, Railway Bureau Deputy Director-General Yang Cheng-chun (楊正君) said in an interview published yesterday. A project to extend the high-speed rail from Zuoying Station in Kaohsiung to Pingtung County’s Lioukuaicuo Township (六塊厝) is the first part of the bureau’s greater plan to expand rail coverage, he told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). The bureau’s long-term plan is to build a loop to circle Taiwan proper that would consist of four sections running from Taipei to Hualien, Hualien to
The Civil Aviation Administration yesterday said that it is considering punishments for China Airlines (CAL) and Starlux Airlines for making hard landings and overworking their cabin crew when the nation was hit by Typhoon Kong-rey in October last year. The civil aviation authority launched an investigation after media reported that many airlines were forced to divert their flights to different airports or go around after failing to land when the typhoon affected the nation on Oct. 30 and 31 last year. The agency reviewed 503 flights dispatched by Taiwanese airlines during those two days, as well as weather data, flight hours
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
Three people have had their citizenship revoked after authorities confirmed that they hold Chinese ID cards, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said yesterday. Two of the three people were featured in a recent video about Beijing’s “united front” tactics by YouTuber Pa Chiung (八炯) and Taiwanese rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源), including Su Shi-en (蘇士恩), who displayed a Chinese ID card in the video, and taekwondo athlete Lee Tung-hsien (李東憲), who mentioned he had obtained a Chinese ID card in a telephone call with Chen, Liang told the council’s weekly news conference. Lee, who reportedly worked in
RSS