The Taichung Metropolitan Opera House and Taichung City's new bus rapid transit (BRT) system will enhance the city's cultural and transportation infrastructure, respectively, and still more importantly refine the community's cultural tastes and international perspective as well, Premier Jiang Yi-huah said today.
The premier remarked that the Taichung Metropolitan Opera House and the Wei Wu Ying Center for the Arts in Kaohsiung City—which he visited last month—are two of the nation's important cultural venues and will be leaders in fostering the artistic and cultural communities and enhancing citizens' aesthetic sensibility. Like the National Theater and Concert Hall in Taipei City, the new venues will bolster their cities' culture and boost their international exposure, he added.
"It is only through culture that a city's depth can be manifested," Jiang remarked. "The Taichung Metropolitan Opera House will play such a role, and it is destined to become a new landmark in central Taiwan."
The intangible influence of the opera house will far surpass its construction cost of NT$4.3 billion (US$143.3 million), the premier affirmed. He shared his high expectations with the opera house's art director and working team, stating the facility's completion will merely mark the beginning of the even more daunting tasks of scheduling weekly, seasonal and yearly programs, providing performing opportunities for local arts and cultural groups, bringing outstanding international performances to Taiwan, and enhancing the citizenry's aesthetic taste.
Earlier in the day, the premier inspected the operations of the BRT. He noted that its routes are swift and smooth, providing great convenience to the public, and said that this mode of transportation encompasses an international perspective, energy conservation and carbon reduction. He sees great potential for the system and believes its operations will surpass expectations.
Jiang pledged that the central government will fully support the construction of other transportation networks as well but reiterated that at present building up a comprehensive BRT network is Taichung's top transportation priority. He also noted that the BRT project has laid the preliminary groundwork for a mass rapid transit (MRT) system, and when the BRT reaches sufficient transportation volume, the city government can then consider building an MRT network.