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進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》 Traffic light as nation braces for typhoon
CANCELED: Ferry operators scrambled to transport about 1,000 tourists back from outlying islands after the weather bureau issued a sea warning for Typhoon Dujuan
By Sean Lin / Staff reporter, with CNA
Although roads nationwide are normally packed on long-weekend holidays, traffic on national freeways was surprisingly sparse yesterday as Typhoon Dujuan approached.
The National Freeway Bureau estimated traffic volume on national freeways was between 1.9 million and 2.2 million vehicles — a significant decrease compared with the approximately 2.7 million vehicles on the road on the corresponding day last year.
According to statistics compiled by the bureau, the actual number of cars on freeways totaled just 640,000 as of 11am yesterday.
The light traffic allowed drivers speedy transits to their destinations, with congestion only encountered along a few sections, including the southbound stretch between Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township （湖口） and the Hukou rest stop on the Sun Yat-sen Freeway （Freeway No. 1）; on the expressway from New Taipei City’s Sijhih District （汐止） to Wudu （五堵）; and the section between Taichung’s Wurih （烏日） and Wufeng （霧峰） districts on the Formosa Freeway （Freeway No. 3）.
The bureau urged people who traveled south yesterday to return to their homes earlier than planned to avoid dangers caused by Typhoon Dujuan.
While terrestrial traffic was smooth, ferries operating between Taiwan and outlying islands were busy sending tourists home yesterday morning.
After the Central Weather Bureau issued a sea warning at 8:30am yesterday, ferries operating between Taitung County and Orchid Island （Lanyu, 蘭嶼） and Green Island worked nonstop to transport about 1,000 tourists back to Taiwan proper.
Due to the sea warning, ferry operators yesterday morning issued an order to dispatch “all available ships” and canceled all sea-bound services past noon.
In preparation for Dujuan, which the bureau upgraded to a “severe typhoon” yesterday, ferry operators announced that they would cancel all services today and tomorrow.
Meanwhile, the New Taipei City Government yesterday urged people to beware potential damage the typhoon could cause to their vehicles.
The New Taipei City Department of Transportation called on private parking lots in flood-prone areas to stack sand bags and for car owners to move their vehicles to prepare for potential flooding.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
