The section from An'ao to Nan'ao in Suhua connects the Nan'ao Beixi Landscape Bridge at its southern end (pictured), and then enters the section from Nan'ao to Heping in Suhua. (Photo provided by Suhua Highway Improvement Engineering Office)
Provincial Highway 9 Suhua Highway Safety Improvement Project (Suhua'an) new tunnel construction project from Dong'ao to Nan'ao is scheduled to hold a groundbreaking ceremony on November 4. Executive Director Zhuo Rongtai will be invited to preside over the construction. It will become the first project bid to start construction in Suhua'an. It strives to complete the entire line by 2032 and connect the Suhuahaan section that has been opened to traffic to create a safe way home.
The mountainous section improvement plan of the Provincial Highway 9 Su-Hua Highway (Su-Hua Reform) prioritizes the landslide-prone areas from Su'ao to Dong'ao, Nan'ao to Heping, and Hezhong to Daqingshui. The three sections were completed and opened to traffic in January 2020; the Ministry of Transportation continues to target Dong'ao to Nan'ao and Heping. Go to Hezhong and Heren to Chongde to handle the safety improvement plan. It was approved by the Executive Yuan in August last year. It has a total length of 29.9 kilometers and a total cost of 105.7 billion yuan. It is expected to be completed and opened to traffic in 2032. By then, Suhua Reform will be combined with Suhua'an to become a safe way home for residents in the east.
The section from Suhua's An'ao to Nan'ao is located in Yilan County, with an improved length of 9.3 kilometers, including 4.7 kilometers of tunnels, 3.8 kilometers of bridges, and 0.8 kilometers of embankments. The northern end connects the section from Su'ao to Dong'ao of Suhua Gai, and the southern end connects the Nan'ao Beixi Landscape Bridge and enters the section from Nan'ao to Heping of Suhua Gai.
The Suhua Highway Improvement Engineering Office pointed out today (29th) that the section from Dong'ao to Nan'ao is divided into two major bids: tunnels and bridges. Among them, the tunnel bid has been contracted, and the winning bid amount is 19.9 billion yuan. After a groundbreaking ceremony was held on November 4, it was announced that the Suhua'an project has entered the start-up stage. As for the bridge bids for the Dong'ao to Nan'ao section, the Heping to Hezhong and the Heren to Chongde sections, they are still in the design and planning stage.
The sections from Heping to Hezhong and Heren to Chongde are both in Hualien County. The improvement length from Heping to Hezhong is 5.5 kilometers, including 4.9 kilometers of bridges, and 0.6 kilometers of embankments. The improvement length of the section from Heren to Chongde is 15.1 kilometers, including 10.2 kilometers of tunnels, 2.8 kilometers of bridges, and 2.1 kilometers of road engineering.
Suhua'an will start construction on November 4. After the entire line is completed and opened to traffic, combined with the Suhua'an section, it will become a safe way home for residents in the east. (Photo provided by Suhua Highway Improvement Engineering Office)
The section of Suhua Highway from Dong'ao to Nan'ao is still a rugged mountain road. (File photo)
