Hehuanshan, a popular mountain destination year-round for stargazing, sunrises, flower viewing, and snow chasing, will start charging for parking during the Qingming holiday. Due to limited parking spaces that were previously free and often occupied for long periods by visitors, the Nantou Branch of the Forestry Bureau has planned to implement parking fees at three parking lots in Kunyang, Wuling, and Hehuanshan Lodge. The installation and testing of the facilities will be completed by the end of March, with operations expected to begin on April 4 to welcome this year's Rhododendron season.

The Nantou Branch of the Forestry Bureau stated that the progress of the Hehuanshan parking lots is on schedule, with contractors required to complete the installation and testing of facilities by the end of March. The fees will be NT$50 per hour for cars from Monday to Thursday (excluding holidays) and NT$60 per hour from Friday to Sunday (including holidays), with a daily maximum of NT$300. Motorcycles will be charged NT$20 per entry, with a 15-minute free buffer period before parking fees apply. This is expected to improve parking turnover rates and reduce environmental burden.

The Nantou Branch emphasized that the entire fee schedule has been submitted to the Nantou County Government for review and approval. Once approval is received, the paid parking system at Kunyang, Wuling, and Hehuanshan Lodge parking lots will be implemented, expected to start operations on April 4. Additionally, since the parking lots operate 24/7, concerns from astronomical groups and stargazers about light pollution have been addressed by installing dimmable lights and covers to reduce light dispersion, with lights turned off after 5 p.m. to balance driving safety and stargazing needs.

The annual Rhododendron season at Hehuanshan runs from April to June. Considering the large number of vehicles during the flower-viewing period, the Central Maintenance Section of the Highway Bureau announced that traffic control for this year's flower season will start from Saturday, April 13, to Sunday, June 16, lasting two months. In addition to high-occupancy vehicle and traffic flow controls on weekends on the section of Highway 14A from Cuifeng to Dayuling, the three parking lots in Hehuanshan will also start charging fees during the flower season. Parking on the shoulders of Highway 14A in Nantou will be prohibited, and parking control will be stricter. Visitors are advised to pay attention to avoid fines for illegal parking.

Source:聯合報