Taoyuan International Airport and the Government are gearing up for a massive infrastructure expansion project: The Taoyuan Aerotropolis. Taoyuan City Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan said during a city council meeting that the Taoyuan Aerotropolis project has been approved by the City Planning Commission of the Ministry of Interior, and the project is scheduled to enter the physical development stage in the third quarter of 2020. Taoyuan Aerotropolis is a large urban planning development at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TTIA) in Taoyuan City. The development is supported by the Taoyuan City Government. According to a news release issued by the city’s Department of Public Information in February 2018, Mayor Cheng said that the requisition of zone expropriation will begin in 2019, including the land for the exclusive industrial district, the Airport Park, and the free-trade area. The requisition of zone expropriation in 2019 will be a great step forward for enterprise recruitment, the mayor said. The City Government is keeping signing contracts with other enterprises for co-operation, Cheng added. The third terminal and the third runway of TTIA will also be completed, the mayor said, adding that in the future, the passenger capacity will reach 80 million per year, and the freight volume will reach 4.75 million tonnes. Construction of TTIA’s Terminal 3 is planned to be completed by the end of 2020, according to Taoyuan International Airport Corporation, the company managing the airport. Concept plans for the massive 4,500-hectare project have been in the works since President Ma’s administration (from 2008 to 2016), and the project will possibly be the largest infrastructure project in Taiwan’s history. A recent report from the American Chamber of Commerce says that the total project is expected to create between 200,000 and 300,000 new jobs. It is also anticipated that the project, once completed, will generate annual revenues of around USD 74 billion. It is expected to drastically increase investment in aviation and transport-related industries in Taiwan, while also increasing the airport’s passenger capacity from around 40 million annual passengers to about 60 million. Promoted as a ‘Gateway to Taiwan and to Asia’, the project calls for new rail lines, including a new MRT line for the Aerotropolis zone itself. In addition to the Taoyuan International Airport, the new complex will include the following five key zones; a Green Innovation Zone, a Logistics and Trading Zone, a LOHAS Residential Zone, a Passenger Transport and Retail Zone, and an Administration and Business Service Zone. The current plans are also being promoted in step with the government’s “5+2" Industrial Innovation program and will be integrated into the Asia Silicon Valley Development initiative. The entire project will also be a fertile ground for investment in smart technologies, Internet of Things, and the development of “green” technology and design. #1085.14