Traffic along the western terminus of Zhongxiao W Road is scheduled to resume tomorrow morning thanks to the unexpectedly quick demolition of the overpass to Zhongxiao Bridge (忠孝橋), Taipei City Government officials said yesterday.
The 750m overpass was located near Taipei’s North Gate (北門) and stretched from Zhongxiao W Road near Taipei Railway Station to Zhongxiao Bridge, connecting downtown Taipei to New Taipei City’s Sanchong District (三重).
Taipei Deputy Mayor Charles Lin (林欽榮) was joined by several city department commissioners for a ceremony to mark the removal of the protective barrier which had been built around the North Gate to protect it during the demolition process, which began on Sunday to take advantage of the city’s lower commuter traffic during the Lunar New Year holiday.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
Lin said the demolition project was 90 percent completed and was well ahead of schedule, adding that traffic would fully resume by 8am tomorrow.
Following the demolition of the overpass, cars that used to cross the bridge are to pass through three traffic lights on Zhongxiao W Road, adding three to five minutes to their commute, Lin said, adding that construction work to expand sidewalks and build a plaza around the North Gate is to continue until the end of November.
The construction project would help the area to once again serve as a gateway to the city, particularly after the nearby terminus station of the Taoyuan Airport MRT line opens later this year, he said.
The gate, designated as a national historic building, was built in 1882 and is the only one of the city’s five gates that has retained its original look.
Taipei Department of Transportation Commissioner Chung Hui-yu (鍾慧諭) said that people returning to work next week would likely take a few days to get used to the overpass’ demolition, urging commuters to switch to public transportation.
Although there would now be one less lane along Zhongxiao W Road’s western terminus, the road itself would not be closed and monitoring equipment on Zhongxiao, Taipei and Zhongxing (中興橋) bridges would be used to help police officers direct traffic, she said, adding that the frequency of city buses to MRT stations would be increased to help more residents ride the MRT lines connecting Taipei and New Taipei City.
“Traffic can be controlled as long as 20 percent of people change their commute habits,” she said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS