New Taipei City is to hold the contractor behind a Tamsui District road project accountable after a burst pipe left roughly 62,000 households without running water for more than three days, New Taipei Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today.
Speaking to reporters at a New Taipei Christmas event, Hou said a special service unit has been set up to handle problems stemming from the incident, and that basic water fees would be reduced or waived.
Hou said the city aims to reconnect the water supply of the remaining 20 percent of affected households by the end of the day today, and would ensure the contractor takes responsibility for the disruption.
Photo: Huang Cheng-chia, Taipei Times
According to the city government, Taiwan Water Corp would reduce bills proportionally based on the actual number of days that households were without water.
A service desk at the Tamsui District Office was also set up today to handle residents' complaints over the next three days, the city said, adding that it would hold the consulting firm and contractor accountable for breaching their contracts and might impose fines.
The Danbei Road project is a new road under construction in Tamsui designed to alleviate chronic traffic congestion between the district and Taipei. It consists of a 5.45km elevated and ground-level four-lane expressway running along the Tamsui River.
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