The Greater Taichung Area
Taiwan is divided into northern, central, southern and eastern economic areas. The Central Economic Area encompasses the City of Taichung and the five neighboring counties of Taichung, Changhua, Miaoli, Yunlin and Nantou, with Taichung City being the center of the whole area. According to a November, 1997 report from the Construction and Planning Administration of the Ministry of the Interior, the Central Area has the greatest potential for development of any of the island's economic areas.
This Greater Taichung Area shares a common historical and cultural heritage since the City and Counties of Taichung, as well as Nantou and Changhua, were all part of Taichung prefecture when Taiwan was under Japanese control prior to the end of the Second World War.
Today, with the completion of a North-South Freeway and other expressways, Miaoli County in the north and Yunlin in the south have been integrated into Taichung's sphere of influence. The majority of the area's population lives within a one-hour drive of downtown Taichung.
The total area of Greater Taichung is 10,506.8 square kilometers, or 4,057 square miles. The eastern half of the area features mountains, river valleys and forests, including the snow-capped Mt. Jade (3,997 meters), the highest peak in Taiwan. The western half has plains, basins, terraces, and miles of beautiful seashore.
Most of the population lives in the western part of the area, with Taichung City proper having more than 900,000 residents. The metropolitan area, which covers western Taichung County and the northern parts of Changhua and Nantou Counties, totals over 3 million. A four-line subway system has been planned for the entire area.
Transportation within the Greater Taichung Area includes a comprehensive modern highway system that covers the whole area from seashore to mountain forests. Major road expansion projects currently being undertaken include a second North-South Freeway and an East-West Freeway connecting the Changping Industrial Zone on the coast to the northern outskirts of the City of Taichung.
The Greater Taichung Area has been designated by the government as one of the regional manufacturing operation centers in the Asia-Pacific owing to its strong industrial base. Some 70% of Taiwan's newly developed industrial zones are located in this area, including the Synthetic Stretch Yarn Professional Zone, the Changping Industrial Zone in Changhua County, and the 15,000-hectare Offshore Industrial Zone in Yunlin County, the largest Industrial Zone in Taiwan.
Traditional industries such as shoes, sporting goods, and textiles are being encouraged to upgrade quality and move up-market, while technology-and capital-intensive industries area being developed. Recently, work on a US$8.85 billion petrochemical complex, invested by Formosa Plastic Group, the island's leading industrial giant, has being started on the coast near Yunlin. However, most of the industrial enterprises in the area are small-and medium-sized. As of the end of 1995, there were 29,006 manufacturing companies in the Greater Taichung Area, 80% of them are located in the City and County of Taichung and in Changhua County.