Taipei Mayor Chiang Wanan announced today (8th) that Songshan Airport will be relocated in the future and plans to transform about 300 hectares of land around the airport into an AI industrial park, residences and large parks. In this regard, Akio Yaita, CEO of the Indo-Pacific Strategic Think Tank, believes that Japan's Haneda Airport, due to its convenience close to the city center, has become an important advantage in Tokyo's international competitiveness and is worth learning from Taipei.
Akio Yaita posted on Facebook that today Jiang Wanan suddenly proposed to move Songshan Airport around 2033 and convert about 300 hectares of land into the "Taipei AI Park." This idea sounds very attractive at first, but he believes that the value of the Capital Airport cannot be measured by land area alone.
Akio Yaita took Haneda Airport in Japan as an example. After the opening of Narita Airport in 1978, most of Tokyo's international routes were transferred to Narita, and Haneda was mainly responsible for domestic routes. At that time, it was believed that it was more reasonable for international routes to be concentrated in Narita. However, a problem was soon discovered. Narita was too far from the center of Tokyo, making it inconvenient for business people and international tourists.
Akio Yaita pointed out that later, Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara actively promoted the "re-internationalization of Haneda Airport." He believed that as a world-class metropolis, Tokyo cannot lack an international airport with convenient transportation. After years of hard work, Haneda opened a fourth runway and a new international terminal in 2010, re-establishing itself as an important international gateway for Tokyo. Today, Haneda Airport has become an important advantage of Tokyo's international competitiveness due to its convenience close to the city center. This history is worth learning from Taipei.
Yaita Akio further pointed out that a truly international city must not only have high-rise buildings and technology parks, but more importantly, it must be able to quickly connect to the world. The airport is not only a transportation facility, but also an important gateway for international business, tourism, diplomacy and talent exchange. Especially airports close to the city center are urban assets that are difficult to replace. Now Taichung is expanding international routes, Kaohsiung is expanding its airport, Taoyuan is also increasing its transportation capacity, and major cities in Taiwan are working hard to strengthen international air transportation. Why does Taipei, the capital, say it wants to give up its most convenient airport?
Akio Yaita said that Matsuyama Airport can fly directly to important city airports such as Tokyo Haneda, Seoul Gimpo, and Shanghai Hongqiao. The greatest value of these routes is that they allow passengers to quickly travel to and from the core areas of major cities. For business people who frequently travel between Taiwan and Japan, the Matsuyama-Haneda route is particularly convenient. This is a unique advantage for Taipei. If it is lost, it will be difficult to get it back.
Yaita Akio said that although Matsuyama Airport also has problems such as noise, building height restrictions and limited urban development, relocation is not necessarily the only way to solve the problem. The success of Haneda Airport is an example of the coexistence and co-prosperity of the airport and the city, not to mention that Matsuyama Airport also undertakes important functions such as eastern and outlying island routes, as well as national defense and disaster relief. He questioned, if it needs to be moved, where should it be moved? How can these functions be arranged effectively? Does Taoyuan Airport have the ability to fully undertake it? If we rebuild an AI park, how will we solve the huge power and infrastructure requirements? These require concrete answers.
Akio Yaita pointed out that it is worth noting that when Wu Yinong proposed the idea of relocating Matsuyama Airport in 2022, Jiang Wanan once emphasized that "major land planning must be discussed carefully and cannot be proposed hastily until the election." He believes that this principle was correct four years ago and should be applicable today. There are only 51 days left before the year-end election. The election can propose a vision, but the vision cannot replace planning. Major policies involving the development of the capital in the next few decades should undergo long-term research, professional evaluation and extensive social discussion, rather than sudden announcement before the election.
