Taipei, Jan. 15 (CNA) A section of the Suhua Highway (Provincial Highway 9) that was cut off after a landslide last week reopened to traffic on Sunday afternoon following repairs.
The landslide on the night of Jan. 11 crushed a 25-meter section of a rock shed on the south end of Daqingshui Tunnel in Hualien's Xiulin Township, cutting off traffic in both directions between Yilan and Hualien counties on the east coast.
The damaged portion of the highway was reopened on schedule at 5 p.m. Sunday after around-the-clock repairs by the Directorate General of Highways (DGH).
Speaking to reporters, DGH Director General Chen Wen-juei (陳文瑞) said workers finished clearing 1,200 cubic meters of debris on Saturday night and spent the early part of Sunday reinforcing the damaged mountain slope with wire netting and sprayed concrete.
Meanwhile, the DGH's Fourth Maintenance Office said that after reopening at 5 p.m., the road would again be closed from 7 p.m. to the following morning, due to the difficulty of effectively monitoring the slope during the nighttime hours.
From Monday through Wednesday, the road section will be open daily from 5-8 a.m., 11 a.m.-1 p.m., and 5-7 p.m., and will remain closed overnight as repair work in the area continues, the office said.
The DGH noted, however, that there will not be any traffic controls in place during the Jan. 19-31 period around the Lunar New Year holiday, when the highway is expected to see a high volume of homebound travelers and tourists.
The DGH estimated last week that around 3,000 vehicles pass through the damaged section of the Suhua Highway in each direction on an average weekday, rising to 6,000-7,000 vehicles on weekends and even higher during national holidays.
