Background

In order to develop tourism, industry resources, and support the “National Development Program—2008 Tourist Double Up Program” by Executive Yuan, re-construction and re-opening of the Hengchun Airport will bring new opportunity for sightseeing in the Southern-most point of Taiwan. This sightseeing-oriented airport will be completed by early 2004.
Objective
Kenting National Park is the most famous tourist spot in Pingtung and also the most-frequently visited national park, with over 6 million visitors per year. The Ministry of the Interior plans to expand the tourist area to Hengchun Peninsula, making it a hub of sightseeing and recreation. Nowadays, with the improvement of living standards, the needs for traveling and recreation have increased and the number of tourists to Hengchun area has also increased. Currently visitors to Kenting have to land at Pintung airport and take a 1.5 hour train ride or longer through Fang-liao to Kenting. If transferring from Hengchun airport, which is only 10 minutes from the well-known Museum of Marine Biology ＆ Aquarium , it only takes 10 to 15 minutes by car, which cuts down on travel time. In addition, because it is located in the southern-most point in Taiwan, Pintung is far from urban areas and lacks medical facilities. Through the expansion of air routes and improvement in airport facilities, the accessibility and connections between remote and urban areas can be improved and the need for emergency medical systems can be fulfilled. Opening the Hengchun airport will also ease the traffic condition of Ping-O Highway during consecutive holidays and fulfill the need for better transportation systems for emergency medicine. By providing convenient transportation to tourism business and people in Pintung County, it is able to facilitate local sightseeing development, ease traffic conditions and improve local living standards.
Vision
The number of tourists to Hengchun is 6 million people per year. In the future, there will be two civil airports in Pintung County, including Pintung Airport and Hengchun Airport. With the opening of HaiKou Port in CheCheng, the extension of the South Link Railway to Hengchun Peninsula, and the establishment of a sightseeing light railway, Pintung County will become the sightseeing hub with the most convenient traffic networks.

The operation target of Hengchun Airport, which is estimated to be completed by the end of 2003 and offer two air routes including Taipei-Hengchun and Taichung-Hengchun, is expected to achieve 170,000 people/year in 2016 and to provide access for 50-passrnger mid-sized civil aircrafts with a landing speed of less than 10 to 20 miles. Air parking ramps will accommodate three mid-sized aircrafts. Three airlines, including Mandarin Airlines, TransAsia Airways and Uni Air, have all agreed to operate here. The total construction cost is around 539,000,000.

As for transportation to the airport, the Pintung County Government is planning a shuttle bus, which will be operated in accordance with flight schedules, that will pick up/drop off passengers in Kenting in 10-min intervals. The bus stop will show the arrival time of the shuttle bus, which will ease passenger anxiety while waiting.