Department of Rapid Transit Systems

DORTS stated that the Taipei MRT system is the first of its kind domestically, and has brought together first-class engineering talent throughout Taiwan including transportation, civil engineering, E&M, and joint development to create a world-class “Taipei MRT.”  After 34 years of development, MRT technology has been transferred to northern, central, and southern Taiwan. As a professional leader of domestic MRT technology and following the publication of the Deluxe Edition MRT Technological Books this year, on October 15, DORTS hosted the “MRT Engineering Optimization and Knowledge Assets Create New Value” seminars. DORTS anticipates passing on the technology in the engineering books for inheritance to enable industry, government, and academia to apply this MRT knowledge. DORTS stated that they hope to be able to stimulate the knowledge potential of MRT engineering professionals and create new value, and they expect to be able to spur the sparks of innovation and make the railway technology more advanced.

When Deputy Mayor Pong Cheng-sheng was today invited to give a speech at the seminars, he specially reaffirmed that the Deluxe Edition MRT Technological Books which had been re-edited by DORTS. Pong stated that the Taipei MRT team has constructed an MRT route network extending in all directions in the Taipei Metropolitan Area; furthermore, the length of the construction has reached 152km with 131 stations. Not only is it a pioneer and navigator of domestic MRT engineering construction, but through the transfer of core expertise, DORTS has exported to other cities, such as New Taipei City, Taichung, and Kaohsiung to complete MRT engineering construction.

In order to introduce new international MRT technological knowledge, and to make the MRT professional technology more refined, DORTS specially planned to co-host seminars on engineering topics and technical exchanges with the following four societies: Chinese Institute of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Chinese Taipei Geotechnical Society, Rail Engineering Society of Taiwan, and Taiwan Railway Electromechanical Technology Association. DORTS pointed out that each society promotes academic exchanges in domestic public engineering and railway construction; moreover, they are the objects of professional and technical and related specifications consultations, and they play an important role as a bridge between industry, government, and academia.

DORTS further explained that for today’s engineering seminars the current CEO of Tang Prize Foundation, an internationally renowned professor and scholar Chern Jenn-chuan, was specially invited to open the prelude to the seminars with the keynote speech “lifecycle considerations of sustainable public construction – safety and disaster prevention, durability, carbon reduction, and cultural landscapes.” Continuing afterwards, seminar discussions were held simultaneously in four venues with two lectures in the morning session and three lectures in the afternoon session making a total of 20 seminar topics. DORTS stated that the scope of the discussions covered MRT planning, MRT civil engineering, MRT E&M engineering, and MRT land development; furthermore, topical content was expanded with civil engineering, structures, construction, tunnels, tracks, construction methods, project management, signals, communications, power supplies, depot facilities, and land development practices. The hosts, interviewees, and presenters invited for each topic were top specialists in their professional fields, and the seminar themes were fascinating and diverse; moreover, the seminars were well received by people from all walks of life.

The routes which are currently under construction are the Xinyi eastern extension and Wanda line Phase I, and continuing onward are the Wanda line Phase II and Circular line north section & south section with contracts for construction and planning of the east section to be successively issued. DORTS also stated that ten years later, the Taipei MRT route network will reach a length of 210.4 km with over 182 stations. It will continue to provide citizens with effective and convenient transportation and green transport equipment to enable the public to have low-carbon environmental protection implemented in their daily lives and put the vision of a liveable and sustainable city into realization.