News

After being destroyed by Typhoon Khanun, the Pingjing Bridge on Nantou County Route 85 in Ren’ai Township, Nantou County, has been rebuilt, renamed Toda Bridge, and officially reopened to traffic. The inauguration ceremony was held on the morning of June 18, featuring hymns performed by the local church choir and lively performances by students from Toda Elementary School. Smiles filled the faces of local residents as the Indigenous community welcomed a safer and more convenient route home, which will also improve the transportation of agricultural products from the mountainous area and support tourism development.

Deputy County Magistrate Wang Rui-De, representing County Magistrate Hsu Shu-Hua, presided over the ceremony. He emphasized that the County Government adhered to the highest standards in reconstructing Pingjing Bridge by relocating the new bridge away from hazardous slopes and allocating additional funding to enhance its disaster resilience. He expressed gratitude to the township mayor, village representatives, elected officials, and the construction team for their support and dedication. Toda Bridge now serves as a vital and secure transportation link for local residents and agricultural transport. He also noted that upgrades to the overall road network along Nantou County Route 85 will continue.

The original Pingjing Bridge, located between Toda and Jingying Villages, was a key transportation route in the mountainous area. In 2023, Typhoon Khanun brought torrential rain and landslides that overtopped the bridge deck, severely undermined its foundations, destroyed its guardrails, and washed away the roadbed on the right bank. As continued upstream erosion further threatened the bridge's stability, the County Government decided to abandon the original site and construct a new bridge at a safer location away from landslide- and flood-prone areas.

The new Toda Bridge adopts a single-span steel I-girder design, measuring approximately 68.8 meters in length and 7.5 meters in overall width, with a clear roadway width of 6.5 meters. It is capable of accommodating large trucks and is designed to allow Class A buses, including tour coaches, to pass safely. To mitigate ongoing streambed erosion, the construction team reinforced the riverbed using shipping containers, significantly improving the bridge's structural stability.

Construction began in January 2025. Despite repeated disruptions from typhoons and heavy rainfall, the bridge was completed on March 31, 2026, and officially opened to traffic on June 18. The total project cost was NT$144.33 million, including NT$78.83 million funded by the central government and NT$65.5 million contributed by the Nantou County Government.

County Councilor Lin Ting-Li highlighted the symbolic importance of Toda Bridge, describing it as not only a safeguard for transportation but also a cornerstone of community development. She thanked the County Government for its commitment to post-disaster reconstruction and the construction team for ensuring uninterrupted access for residents throughout the rebuilding process.

Ren’ai Township Mayor Chiang Zi-Xin noted that since Typhoon Khanun struck, villages such as Delugu and Toda had endured prolonged road closures. With the bridge now open, residents are finally free from years of transportation difficulties. He expressed gratitude for the support of the central and county governments, which have invested approximately NT$4–5 billion in post-disaster reconstruction projects in Ren’ai Township in recent years. With several other bridge reconstruction projects also nearing completion, these efforts are bringing residents a renewed sense of safety and well-being.

Village representatives from Toda, Chunyang, and Delugu jointly petitioned to rename the new bridge Toda Bridge to better reflect its geographic location. The County Government accepted the proposal and officially adopted the new name upon completion of the reconstruction.