Tainan to start construction on first MRT line in late 2026

Tainan to start construction on first MRT line in late 2026

2024-04-25

Tainan is getting an MRT. The project’s first phase has passed its environmental impact assessment. Construction on the Blue Line will start in late 2026, with completion slated for 2031. The line will feature 10 stations on an elevated track that runs through Yongkang and East districts.

Phase 1 of Tainan MRT’s Blue Line has cleared its environmental impact assessment. Construction is slated to start in late 2026.

Member of public
I’d welcome an MRT. The sooner it is built, the better. Being able to ride the metro would make things much more convenient for me.

Member of public
I don’t think there’s really a need for an MRT system in Tainan. Everyone rides scooters anyway. Just look at the buses, they barely have any passengers.

The city says the line will help connect key parts of the city.

Lu Chiang-hui
Tainan Rapid Transit Office
The MRT system will be elevated, so the stations and tracks will be built on pillars located on the center reservations of roads.

In the project’s first phase, 10 stations will be built, spanning 8.39 kilometers across the densely populated Yongkang and East districts. The line is expected to open in 2031.

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台南捷運第一期"藍線環評通過" 預計後年年底前開工

2024-04-25

台南市也即將要興建捷運了，第一期藍線計畫，經過環評小組及交通部審查通過，預計2026年底前開工，2031年就會完工通車。藍線捷運穿越人口密集的永康區和東區，總共10個車站，將採高架方式，串聯府城生活圈。

台南捷運第一期藍線，通過第一階段環評，將在2026年底前開工。

[[民眾]]
“蠻樂觀其成的，對我來說越早完工越好，我能夠越快搭到捷運，對我來說更方便。”

[[附近店家]]
“我是覺得說在台南市，捷運好像比較不需要，因為大部分一般都是騎機車，你看台南市的公車，坐的人也沒有很多啊。”

市府評估，捷運對於串聯府城生活圈，確實扮演重要角色。

[[台南市府捷運工程處長呂獎慧]]
“捷運系統是採用高架系統，所以整個工程會採用中央分隔島的方式，做一個立柱的工程推動。”

台南第一條藍線捷運，總共10個車站，全長約8.39公里，穿越人口密集的永康區和東區，預計2031年，完工通車。

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President-elect Lai Ching-te and Premier-designate Cho Jung-tai have announced the leaders of Taiwan’s incoming national security team.

Lai Ching-te
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The world at large is experiencing severe geopolitical shifts, the rise of regional hegemony, the restructuring of global supply chains, and a change in value systems. As such, our national security team will be facing unprecedented challenges. The people I have asked to join our national security team are all outstanding talent, who will work together in areas including national defense, national security, diplomacy and cross-strait affairs.

Taiwan’s next foreign minister will be Presidential Office Secretary-General Lin Chia-lung. Wellington Koo will take over as minister of national defense. The National Security Council will be headed by foreign minister Joseph Wu, while Tsai Ming-yen will remain as National Security Bureau director-general. The Mainland Affairs Council will be led by Chiu Chui-cheng. Former defense minister Yen Teh-fa will take over as Veterans Affairs Council head, Pan Men-an will become Presidential Office secretary-general, and Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan will serve as the head of the Straits Exchange Foundation.

Lai emphasized that the new national security team has three characteristics: professional expertise, good team rapport, and a deep sense of duty to the nation. As China ramps up its pressure on Taiwan, the team will have the important task of safeguarding the country.

All the appointees have experience serving in the Tsai administration. But amid heightened tensions with China, some picks have raised criticism: in particular, the choice of a civilian as defense minister and a non-diplomat as foreign minister.

Lai Ching-te
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Today’s defense minister is different from the ones in the past, who needed to focus solely on military affairs. Wellington Koo has talent in a wide variety of areas. I think that, at the current stage, he is the best choice to lead the defense ministry.

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As President-elect Lai just mentioned, it is not uncommon for civilians to assume the office of defense minister in democratic countries. It is a big responsibility, so I will be cautious and prudent.

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Diplomacy is an extension of domestic affairs. Due to Taiwan’s situation, diplomacy is something closely intertwined with our survival and development. I will approach my role with the utmost caution, and give it my all.

The next national security team has taken shape. On May 20, the new government is set to lead the country steadily forward.

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Junior high athletes fundraise for Swedish handball contest

Junior high students in Kaohsiung are fundraising for a trip to Sweden, to compete in a major handball contest. The handball teams of Yangming Junior High have long dominated the domestic leagues, in both boys’ and girls’ sections. The boys’ team previously visited Denmark to play against other young people from around the world. Now it’s the girls’ turn to head to Sweden. But will they make up the funds they need in time? Let’s head to Kaohsiung for more.

This group of students is the girls’ handball team of Yangming Junior High, Kaohsiung, and they’re fundraising to go compete overseas.

A member of the public caught this footage and put it on social media, in the hope of helping them raise more money.

Yangming Junior High is famous for both its boys’ and girls’ handball teams, which have won clutches of gold and silver medals at handball tournaments across Taiwan. In 2019, the boys’ team represented Taiwan at the Dronninglund Cup, Denmark’s international youth handball tournament, and went home undefeated after 11 wins. Now it’s the girls’ team who want to go compete in the cup in Gothenburg, Sweden in July.

Huang Meng-yun
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Altogether eight students and one coach will go together, for about two weeks. Since the pandemic, the expenses for one person will be at least NT$100,000.

When the boys’ team went abroad before, they fundraised on the street too, and this time the girls are raising money, with their parents in support.

Chang Yung-fen
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The Department of Education will cover some of the expenses, NT$25,000, I think. The Sports Administration will also cover NT$15,000. The remainder will of course be the school and parents, and the community, everyone working together. Actually, strictly speaking, they haven’t raised a whole lot of money, but the parents wanted to make the kids realize, it’s not that adults should stump up all money, so they can experience how money doesn’t grow on trees.

These girls are working hard to make their dreams a reality, and whether or not they come home with a trophy, they’ll have plenty to be proud of.

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Distinguished guests gather onstage at the launch of the economics ministry’s display technologies pavilion. President-elect Lai Ching-te was present to show his support.

The 2024 Touch Taiwan expo opened Wednesday at Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center. At the three-day expo, ITRI is showcasing its collaborations with the private sector.

The “Wishing Tree” installation features Taiwan’s largest curved interactive display, measuring 375 inches. Visitors can upload wishes to the tree using mobile technology. The tree even served as backdrop for a marriage proposal, a moment celebrated by ITRI in a short film.

Lewis Liu
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A Taiwanese-American drag queen has been crowned the victor of Season 16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. Nymphia Wind clinched the top spot in the drag race final last weekend. The long-running U.S. reality show is the most celebrated stage for drag queens worldwide. The queen, who is a seamstress by trade, made many of her Taiwan-culture-themed costumes personally. Her victory inspired a note of congratulations from none other than President Tsai Ing-wen, who wrote on Instagram, “Taiwan thanks you for living fearlessly.”

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Nymphia Wind
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She competed with drag queens from all over the world over three months to win the biggest accolade of the drag world, storming her way to the final with a succession of outrageous costumes and performances.

This costume is based on the banana, Taiwan’s emblematic fruit. Her bizarre yet cutesy style made big waves with U.S. audiences. For the final, she and two American contestants went head-to-head in a final showdown.

Nymphia changed into a bubble tea-inspired costume, releasing a storm of black “tapioca pearls” up to the ceiling. Her lip synch performances were always surprising. She is the first Taiwanese-American to be crowned on the show, and said she had wanted to break the show’s “Asian curse,” a long dearth of success for Asian contestants.

President Tsai Ing-wen posted on Instagram to congratulate Nymphia, stating, “Taiwan thanks you for living fearlessly.” Twenty-eight-year-old Nymphia Wind, whose real name is Leo Tsao, was born in the U.S. and moved to Taiwan with her family aged 6. She fell in love with dance and sewing as a child, and studied sewing and clothing design in the U.K. She first began performing drag in 2018, and still makes many of her eye-popping costumes herself, by hand.

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In 2017, Sato opened a digital marketing company with his friends. The company not only helps Japanese business with marketing in Taiwan, but also markets Taiwan to Japan.

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Leo Sato
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Next, I want to understand the history and economy of each region, like what industries they have. For my videos, I want to first gain a deeper understanding of Taiwanese people so that I can conduct better research on each area.

Now an entrepreneur in Taiwan, Sato has put down roots, building the stable and peaceful life of his dreams.

This story was provided by the program "We Are Family"
Funded by New Immigrant Development Fund

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