Concerts by British band Coldplay at the Kaohsiung National Stadium attracted more than 170,000 fans over the weekend and generated about NT$550 million (US$17.18 million) in revenue, the city government said on Monday.
On Sunday, the number of people in and around the stadium peaked at 86,505, a record for the venue, it said in a statement.
The stadium and areas around it were visited by more than 170,000 people over the two days, boosting sales at night markets by at least 30 percent and lifting occupancy rates at downtown hotels to 90 percent, it said.
Photo: CNA
To facilitate transportation of fans, the city coordinated with the Kaohsiung MRT to increase rail services and arranged shuttle buses, it said.
It took 82 and 88 minutes to disperse the crowds on Saturday and Sunday respectively, the city said.
Of the 170,000 people who attended, 70 percent were from outside Kaohsiung, including overseas visitors from Hong Kong, Macau, Europe, North America and Southeast Asia, Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau data showed.
Separately, the Kaohsiung City Government on Wednesday said that the stadium, which has a capacity of 55,000, is the only stadium in Taiwan that can hold more than 45,000 people.
The stadium has received a “gold” rating from the central government for its environmental design, which is in line with Coldplay’s advocacy for environmental sustainability, the city government said.
Designed by Japanese architect Toyo Ito, the dragon-shaped stadium’s main structure has 8,844 solar panels that can generate 1.1 million kilowatts of electricity annually, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 660 tonnes per year, it said.
Coldplay aims to make its Music of the Spheres world tour “as sustainable and low-carbon as possible,” mainly by cutting carbon emissions by 50 percent compared with their previous tours in 2016 and 2017, and supporting new green technologies, the band said on its Web site.
To encourage recycling, Coldplay asked concert-goers to return their LED wristbands after the shows, the city government said.
At the band’s first Kaohsiung concert on Saturday, the recycling rate for LED wristbands was 93 percent, the city government said.
SEND A MESSAGE: Sinking the amphibious assault ship, the lead warship of its class, is meant to show China the US Navy is capable of sinking their ships, an analyst said The US and allied navies plan to sink a 40,000-tonne ship at the latest Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise to simulate defeating a Chinese amphibious assault on Taiwan. This year’s RIMPAC — the 29th iteration of the world’s largest naval exercise — involves the US, 28 partners, more than 25,000 personnel, 40 warships, three submarines and more than 150 aircraft operating in and around Hawaii from yesterday to Aug. 1, the US Navy said in a press release. The major components of the event include multidomain warfare exercises in multiship surface engagements, anti-submarine warfare and multi-axis defense of a carrier strike
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
The airspace around Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) is to be closed for an hour on July 25 and July 23 respectively, due to the Han Kuang military exercises, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The annual exercise is to be held on Taiwan proper and its outlying islands from July 22 to 26. During last year’s exercise, the military conducted anti-aircraft landing drills at the Taoyuan airport for the first time, for which a one-hour no-fly ban was issued. Based on a live-fire bulletin sent out by the Maritime and Port Bureau, the nation’s
Taiwan and Thailand have signed an agreement to promote and protect bilateral investment and trade, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations (OTN) said on Friday. The agreement on “Promotion and Protection of Investments” was signed by Representative to Thailand Chang Chun-fu (張俊福) and Thailand Trade and Economic Office in Taipei executive director Narong Boonsatheanwong on Thursday, the OTN said in a news release. Thailand has become the fifth trading partner to sign an investment agreement with Taiwan since 2016, following earlier agreements with the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Canada, the OTN said. The deal marks a significant milestone in the development of