The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday finalized route for a Taiwan High Speed Rail line to Yilan County, which avoids the Feitsui Water Reservoir’s (翡翠水庫) watershed, a source within the ministry said.
The ministry originally had three proposals for the Taipei-Yilan section of the railway, two of which were shorter, but crossed the watershed, while the ministry-proposed route, although longer, completely avoids it.
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) approved the ministry’s decision yesterday after being briefed on the issue at a meeting and is expected to announce the plan in Yilan in the coming days.
Photo: Cheng Wei-chi, Taipei Times
While the chosen route is the most expensive option, transport time would be slower by only 30 seconds to 1 minute, the source said.
It ultimately decided that ensuring a clean water supply for the residents of the greater Taipei area superseded any other consideration, the source added.
The high-speed rail line would increase transport capacity between Taipei and Yilan, and decrease the number of people who would otherwise drive or use the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) services, the source said.
It would provide travelers with an additional travel option to eastern Taiwan, while addressing a lack of sufficient transport capacity between New Taipei City’s Shulin District (樹林) and Keelung City’s Qidu District (七堵), the source added.
The Chinese-language United Daily News reported that New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) suggested at yesterday’s meeting that the planned line cross near Taiwan’s northeastern coast.
Hou suggested that the ministry consider the option of the new line sharing the TRA’s Pingsi Station (平溪), as this would benefit local development.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said that the plans would undergo some adjustments as a result of yesterday’s decision, adding that the planned Minsheng-Xizhi mass rapid transit line, which has passed its environmental impact assessment, would also need adjustments to its planned route, the newspaper said.
Yilan County Commissioner Lin Tzu-miao (林姿妙) said that the ministry’s decision to circumvent the reservoir’s watershed is to be applauded, as it would minimize the environmental impact.
Lin Tzu-miao said that she hopes the project would be expedited to address Yilan’s relative isolation due to its location.
Yilan Mayor Chiang Tsung-yuan (江聰淵) said that the ministry’s decision faces a significant obstacle — the environmental impact assessment — and the route’s extra length could lead to delays in the project.
Citing as an example the 12.9km Hsuehshan Tunnel (雪山隧道), which took many years to construct, Chiang said that he hopes the selected route, which would require 11.4km of tunneling and path construction, would not take more than 10 years to build.
FIREPOWER: On top of the torpedoes, the military would procure Kestrel II anti-tank weapons systems to replace aging license-produced M72 LAW launchers Taiwan is to receive US-made Mark 48 torpedoes and training simulators over the next three years, following delays that hampered the navy’s operational readiness, the Ministry of National Defense’s latest budget proposal showed. The navy next year would acquire four training simulator systems for the torpedoes and take receipt of 14 torpedoes in 2027 and 10 torpedoes in 2028, the ministry said in its budget for the next fiscal year. The torpedoes would almost certainly be utilized in the navy’s two upgraded Chien Lung-class submarines and the indigenously developed Hai Kun, should the attack sub successfully reach operational status. US President Donald Trump
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to start construction of its 1.4-nanometer chip manufacturing facilities at the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP, 中部科學園區) as early as October, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday, citing the park administration. TSMC acquired land for the second phase of the park’s expansion in Taichung in June. Large cement, construction and facility engineering companies in central Taiwan have reportedly been receiving bids for TSMC-related projects, the report said. Supply-chain firms estimated that the business opportunities for engineering, equipment and materials supply, and back-end packaging and testing could reach as high as
ALL QUIET: The Philippine foreign secretary told senators she would not respond to questions about whether Lin Chia-lung was in the country The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday confirmed that a business delegation is visiting the Philippines, but declined to say whether Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) is part of the group, as Philippine lawmakers raised questions over Lin’s reported visit. The group is being led by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Huang Chao-chin (黃昭欽), Chinese International Economic Cooperation Association (CIECA) chairman Joseph Lyu (呂桔誠) and US-Taiwan Business Council (USTBC) vice president Lotta Danielsson, the ministry said in a statement. However, sources speaking on condition of anonymity said that Lin is leading the delegation of 70 people. Filinvest New Clark City Innovation Park
DEFENSIVE EDGE: The liaison officer would work with Taiwan on drones and military applications for other civilian-developed technologies, a source said A Pentagon unit tasked with facilitating the US military’s adoption of new technology is soon to deploy officials to dozens of friendly nations, including Taiwan, the Financial Times reported yesterday. The US Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) is to send a representative to collaborate with Taiwan on drones and military applications from the semiconductor industry by the end of the year, the British daily reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “Drones will certainly be a focus, but they will also be looking at connecting to the broader civilian and dual-use ecosystem, including the tech sector,” one source was
RSS