TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — For the first time in its 15-year history, Taipei City’s Maokong Gondola will have its overhead cables replaced, requiring the popular attraction to close from Sept. 13 until mid-December, reports said Friday (Sept. 10).
The project has to proceed in different phases, including the removal of the original cables which have been in service ever since the system opened, the fixing of the new cables, and tests to ascertain their safety, UDN reported. The target month of December can only be maintained if the weather does not bring any unforeseen difficulties.
During the work, the area can still be reached by different bus lines, said Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation (TRTC), which operates the 4-kilometer-long gondola line near Taipei Zoo.
As the timing of the cable replacement follows official standard operation procedures, the project has already been under discussion for two years, according to TRTC. The original manufacturer, France’s POMA Group, sent experts to discuss the method of replacement and necessary equipment while staff went on study trips to Hong Kong and South Korea.
The experts concluded that the project would require 100 working days and that the period between September and December would be the best time to proceed because of a lower number of visitors in previous years.