Taiwan News
Date: 2016-08-27
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The Ministry of Transportation and Communications was confident about the safety of the Mass Rapid Transit system linking Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport with Taipei City, even though the requested time needed for the journey would be reached later, reports said Saturday.

Completion of the line has been postponed six times, and trains have reportedly been unable to make the entire journey within the 35 minutes required by the contract.

The MOTC reportedly considered opening the line before the end of this year as planned, but allowing more time for the 35-minute requirement to be reached. Recent tests had already cut travel time from 37 to 36 minutes, reports said. Direct trains reached a speed of 57 kilometers per hour, even though the contract demanded 60 kph, reports said. The gap between trains, 3 minutes, had also still not been achieved.

The transportation minister who took office last May, Ho Chen Tan, formed a special taskforce to review work on the airport MRT project. The aim of the group was to provide the ministry with independent and objective suggestions for improvements, with Saturday set as the day for the presentation of its final report.     [FULL  STORY]