On weekends and holidays, heavy traffic is all too common along Freeway No. 5 between Taipei and Yilan. Today Transportation Minister Lin Chia-lung said his team was open to the idea of adding a high speed rail station in Yilan, to help clear road congestion. This idea still has to go through feasibility studies, but it''s already been met with cheers from Taipei drivers who are sick of the holiday slog. On weekends and holidays, drivers can count on congestion leading up to Hsuehshan Tunnel. Transport officials are looking into unclogging the freeway by adding Yilan to the high speed rail network.There’s already a plan to create a direct railway line between Taipei and Yilan. The ministry says there should be a direct high-speed rail line, too.Lin Zi-miaoYilan County commissionerTheir push for a direct rail line and a high speed rail connection makes us really happy. When I proposed it before, the response had been different. Adding a bullet train line could prove too expensive and difficult. The transport minister said that even the railway project isn’t a sure thing.Lin Chia-lungTransportation ministerAt the start, the plan for a rail line between Taipei and Yilan was controversial. Its feasibility appraisal is about to enter the second stage of environmental assessment. There are still a lot of variables at play that could change things.Voice of Lee Ker-tsungTransportation professorBecause of the topography and terrain, upgrading the railway tracks to high speed rail tracks presents a much greater degree of difficulty.Experts say it could be too challenging to build a bullet train line that reaches Yilan. But the government’s proposal is already fueling big hopes for a congestion-free future.
