MT Gondola:Suspended!

[GWR]

Maokong Gondola prepares to greet its three millionth passenger

Maokong Gondola prepares to greet its three millionth passenger
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/news_images/20080216/p16a.jpg
[Photo: The China Post - One of the five newly painted Maokong gondolas is seen in Taipei yesterday. Taipei Rapid Transit Corp. announced the system, inaugurated on July 4, 2007, is expected to see passenger volume hit 3 million on Sunday, and the newly painted gondolas are part of the celebrations to mark the occasion.(CNA)]

Saturday, February 16, 2008
CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Five painted Maokong gondolas greeted riders yesterday as the Taipei Rapid Transit Corp. (TRTC), the operator of the new cable car system, is preparing to celebrate the arrival of its 3 millionth passenger.

Transit Corp. officials said the system, which was inaugurated on July 4, 2007, is expected to see passenger volume hit 3 million this Sunday, and the painted gondolas are part of the celebrations by the company to mark that occasion.

Other activities to celebrate the high ridership include installation of the LED lamp under the seats in the gondola cars to create a romantic atmosphere at night in the mountainous area where the cable car system is located.

The Transit Corp. is also preparing to present each rider with a bottle of cute gondola-shaped mineral water on the day when the passenger volume hits 3 million. A total of 10,000 bottles will be given out.

The Maokung cable car system, which connects two popular tourist attractions -- the Taipei Zoo and the Mucha tea growing district -- is the longest gondola in Taiwan, at a length of 4.03 km. It takes only 20 minutes to travel between the two terminals.

Transit Corp. officials said that according to a market survey of 1,108 riders over 16 years old, up to 80 percent said they were satisfied with the ride, and 94 percent said they would recommend it to friends and relatives.

Also, 84 percent of passengers said they are willing to ride the cable car again.

The survey also found that 73 percent of the patrons said they took the ride because they wanted to experience it and 55 percent said they would also visit the scenic spots along the route, with the biggest percentage -- 35 percent -- saying they wanted to visit the Taipei Zoo, one of the four stops, officials said.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/2008/02/16/143071/Maokong%2DGondola.htm

[GWR]

Friday, April 18, 2008
Locals complain about gondola's noise pollution
The China Post news staff

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Over 10 people residing near a station of the Maokong gondola system connecting the Taipei Zoo and the tea-growing area in Mucha district petitioned the Taipei City Government yesterday to improve the noise pollution generated by the system.

Chen Yao-teh, leader of the protesting residents, visited the Taipei City Council asking it to press the city government to address the noise generated by the cable car system, which they say has made them unable to sleep well. "Many of us have to take sleeping pills, or may stay awake as a result of the noise pollution," Chen said.

The station in question is the one housing the electrical engineering system and the cable cars, covering a total floor area of 2,558 square meters with 1,000 horse power. "The noise generated by the station has made us mad; it lasts from 5:00 a.m. through 11:00 p.m. or even much later than that," Chen told the city councilors.

In response, City Councilor Lin Yi-hua of the Kuomintang said that she will move to request the Taipei Rapid Transit Corp. to shorten the operation hours to only 12 hours, from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., reduce the moving speed of the cable cars to two meters per second, and relocate the electrical engineering system and cable car storage space farther away from the offending station, so as to improve the noise situation.

However, related city government officials said that it's impossible for them to relocate the electrical engineering system and cable car storage space, adding that they can reduce the moving speed of the cable cars to 3 meters per second after 8:00 p.m.
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/local/taipei/2008/04/18/152425/Locals%2Dcomplain.htm

[GWR]

Updated Monday, December 1, 2008 2:56 pm TWN, The China Post n
Gondola idle until next June
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- The Maokong Gondola, one of Taipei's top tourist attractions, will remain idle until next June at the very least.

"We'll have to suspend the cable car service for at least half a year," Mayor of Taipei Hau Lung-bin told a hasty press conference yesterday.

The Taipei municipal government owns and operates the service from the City Zoo at Muzha to a hill known as Maokong or Cat's Sky near the famous Temple of Thousand Steps.

Hau called the press meeting immediately after four colleges of engineers presented a joint assessment report on the damage done to the Maokong Gondola by typhoons and mudslides triggered this past September.

"Their assessment is being studied," Hau said. He is facing two options, either to relocate the cable car system or rebuild the damaged T-16 tower.

The base of the tower was washed bare by mudslides touched off by Typhoon Jiang Mi, which hit Taiwan in full force on September 28. Cable car service has remained suspended since October 1.

"We're still waiting for another assessment," Hau said. The new assessment will be made available on December 12. It has to be studied closely before the municipal authorities decide to opt for relocation or rebuilding.

Engineers have strongly recommended relocation because the whole cable car system was been weakened. Relocation is much costlier than the rebuilding of the weakened tower.

The bedrock on which Maokong Gondola is built has been weakened, the assessment by engineers said.

"But for the time being," Hau said, "we will have to see to it that the residents in the neighborhood are free from fear of danger."

Mudslides swamped a housing estate near the Temple of Thousand Steps dedicated to Lu Dongbin, a Taoist immortal popularly worshipped in Taiwan and southern China. No causalities were reported, however.

The estate is right below the T-16 tower. Municipal road-building teams have to clean rock and mud sliding down the hill from time to time, often three or four days in a row, to ensure the security of the residents.

That work will continue, Hau promised. "The safety of the residents is our chief concern," he said.

Without the Maokong Gondola in operation, Taipei is losing tourists. Travel agencies have estimated the loss by half.

Opened on July 4 last year, the Maokong Gondola has attracted more than 6 million tourists/rides. At least 70 percent of the riders were from central and southern Taiwan.

People in those parts of the island have lost interest in visiting Taipei because they cannot take cable car rides, said Yang Xiao-dong, head of Taipei's municipal tourist bureau.

Of course, people can visit Cat's Sky Hill by bus. The hill commands a panoramic view of the Greater Taipei area. "But that's not the same," a travel agent said. "People love to ride the Maokong Gondola," he added.

There are altogether 52 employees on the Maokong Gondola payroll. They have nothing to do for six more months.

For the last two months, the gondola has lost at least NT$30 million in gate receipts. It has to brace itself for another NT$90 million loss.
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/local/taipei/2008/12/01/185572/Gondola-idle.htm