TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — An elevated section of Provincial Highway No. 1 damaged by a fallen beam from a truck is expected to take two months to repair, and the driver responsible has been arrested.
At 5:50 a.m. on Tuesday (Aug. 20), a beam fell off a semi-trailer truck on the elevated Zhongshan Street section of Provincial Highway 1 in New Taipei's Sanchong District, causing damage to the guardrail. Police arrested the driver, a 34-year-old man surnamed Hung (洪), and after questioning him, transferred him to the district prosecutor's office to be investigated for offenses against public safety (公共危險罪), per CNA.
The beam broke through the elevated road's surface and guardrail, sending concrete debris onto the road below. Two vehicles were damaged but no injuries were reported.
Hung's breathalyzer test was negative. He claimed that he had securely tied down the steel beam after loading it in Taoyuan for delivery to a construction site in Taipei and did not know why it fell off.
Police said they confiscated the vehicle's tachograph, which showed the truck was traveling between 60 to 70 km/h before coming to a stop, exceeding the 50 km/h speed limit for that section of the road. However, the speed recorded by the tachograph can only be used as a reference to clarify the responsibility for the accident and cannot be used to directly issue a speeding ticket.
The police investigation revealed that the truck's bill of lading listed a total weight of 53.27 tons, while the truck's legal load limit was 43 tons, meaning it was overloaded by 10.27 tons. The driver was cited for violating the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例) and faces a fine of at least NT$10,000 (NT$300).
In addition, the police will issue a fine of between NT$3,000 and NT$18,000 for improper securing of cargo and order corrections or bar Hung from operating vehicles.
The police said that because Hung's truck caused the steel beam to fall and damage the bridge, creating a public hazard, he would face road repair costs and vehicle damage compensation exceeding NT$1 million. After questioning, Hung was transferred to the New Taipei District Prosecutors Office.
After further questioning in the evening, the prosecutor released Hung but placed him under residential restrictions.
