Suhua Highway Improvement Project

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The Suhua Highway Improvement Project (Chinese: 蘇花公路改善計畫; pinyin: Sū-Huā Gōnglù Gǎishàn Jìhuà; colloquially 蘇花改, pinyin: Sūhuāgǎi) is a major highway project in northeast Taiwan to improve and bypass dangerous sections of the Suhua Highway, part of Provincial Highway 9.[1]

The Suhua Highway is the main road connecting the Taiwanese communities of Su'ao and Hualien, and a portion of it is built alongside very steep cliffs high above the Pacific Ocean. Because of the rugged terrain, the road is often closed due to heavy rain, typhoons, or landslides, leading to injuries and deaths.[2]

In the 1990s, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) started planning a new freeway to connect Su'ao and Hualien, as part of National Freeway 5. However, it was controversial because of its huge projected construction costs[citation needed] and environmental impact.[3] Instead, the MOTC developed a scaled-down project, which would construct bridges and tunnels in three dangerous sections: Su'ao–Dong'ao (9.8 km, 6.1 mi), Nan'ao–Heping (20 km, 12 mi), and Heping–Qingshui (8.6 km, 5.3 mi). Compared to a freeway, the improved highway would have a lower speed limit and still have only one lane in each direction. The new alignment will cut travel time along the coastline from 2.5 hours to 80 minutes. Some parts of the old alignment will be kept open for bicycles and small vehicles, with a speed limit of 30 kilometres per hour (19 mph).[3]

The project was named the Suhua Highway Alternative Project (Chinese: 蘇花公路替代計畫; pinyin: Sū-Huā Gōnglù Tìdài Jìhuà; colloquially 蘇花替 pinyin: Sūhuātì) in 2008. Its name was changed to its current name in 2010.

Construction started in 2011 and was expected to take five years and cost 46.5 billion New Taiwan dollars. Due to difficulties in construction,[4] the MOTC now expects to complete it in 2019.[5]

References[]

  1. ^ Waye, Melissa (2016-01-26). "2015 IOM3 (HK) Overseas Trip — Exploring Underground Works in Taiwan". The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  2. ^ Kong, Adam (2013-10-15). "On the way home from Nan'ao…". A Fulbright Experience in Taiwan. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Kastner, Jens (2014-12-19). "Weighing Road Safety and the Environment". Taiwan Business Topics. American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  4. ^ "Breakthrough achieved in key tunnel in Suhua highway project". Focus Taiwan News Channel. Central News Agency, Republic of China (Taiwan). 2016-10-29. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  5. ^ "Suhua Highway improvement to be finished by 2019". Taipei Times. Taipei, Taiwan. 2016-03-29. Retrieved 2017-01-14.

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