The Dadaocheng Fireworks Festival kicks off this Saturday, with traffic controls in place around the area.

By Li Xinyi, compiled and reported

The “2011 Taipei Dadaocheng Fireworks Festival” will be grandly held on August 6 at Dadaocheng Wharf (Yanping Riverfront Park). On the day of the event, traffic controls will be implemented on Zhongxiao Bridge and surrounding roads. From 8:00 PM to 9:00 PM on August 6, motor vehicles, motorcycles, and pedestrians will be prohibited from entering Zhongxiao Bridge, with the control time subject to flexible adjustments. Due to fireworks setup, the north pedestrian walkway of Zhongxiao Bridge will be closed to pedestrians starting from midnight on August 5 until 3:00 AM on August 7. Pedestrians will be rerouted to use the south walkway to access the bridge. During the fireworks display from 8:00 PM to 9:00 PM on August 6, the south pedestrian walkway will also be closed to pedestrians and cleared.

Additionally, from 6:30 PM on August 6, phased traffic controls will be enforced on roads surrounding Dadaocheng Wharf. The first phase begins at 6:30 PM, covering an area south of Kaifeng Street (from Xining South Road to Huanbei North Road) in the north, up to Liangzhou Street (from Huanbei North Road to Yanping North Road) in the south, east to Yanping North Road – Tacheng Street – Xining South Road in the west, and west to Huanhe South and North Roads (including the roads) in the east. The second phase begins at 8:00 PM, involving two-way lane controls on Zhongxiao Bridge, closures of entry points on Chongqing South Road and Xining North Road, full vehicle controls on Zhongxiao West Road heading west at Chongqing South Road intersection, Zhonghua Road intersection, and Tacheng Street intersection, as well as full controls heading west and north at Xining South Road intersection. On Civic Boulevard, all vehicles traveling eastbound will be directed to exit via Jianguo North Road. The ramp connecting to Taipei Transfer Station will be closed accordingly, with adjustments made to allow entry and exit via the Chengde Road surface-level exit.

At the event venues at Dadaocheng Wharf and Yanping Riverfront Park, controlled access will be enforced at water gate entrances 3 to 5 (including evacuation gate 5-1, the riverside park approach under Taipei Bridge, and the riverbank bicycle path “Earth Reborn” leading to the Dihua Sewage Treatment Plant). Starting at 6:00 AM on August 6, only exiting (not entering) will be allowed for vehicles (including bicycles). When the first phase of controls begins (at 6:30 PM on August 6), both entry and exit will be restricted. Controls will remain in place until 11:00 PM on the same day.