What is Central Cross-Island Highway?
[[File:Tai 8.svg|right|100px|Provincial Highway No. 8]] [[Image:Central_Cross-Island_Highway.png|thumb|200px|Central Cross-Island Highway (in red and blue). The blue parts are permanently closed because of earthquake and typhoon damage.]] [[Image:Taiwan 2009 HuaLien Taroko Gorge Narrow Gap and Road PB140025.jpg|right|thumb|150px]] The '''Central Cross-Island Highway''' ({{lang|zh|中部橫貫公路}}) or '''Provincial Highway No.8''' is one of three highway systems that connect the east and west coasts of [[Taiwan]]. ==Construction== Construction of the Central Cross-Island Highway began on July 7, 1956 and it first opened to traffic on May 9, 1960. ==Route== [[Image:Taiwan 2009 HuaLien Taroko Gorge Temple FRD 6719.jpg|thumb|right]] The highway begins in the west at [[Dongshi District]] in [[Taichung]]. The highway used to go up into the [[Central Mountain Range]] along the [[Dajia River]] ({{lang|zh|大甲溪}}) valley through the townships of [[Guguan, Taiwan|Guguan]] ({{lang|zh|谷關}}) and [[Cingshan]] ({{lang|zh|青山}}). At Lishan there is a branch that heads north to [[Yilan City]]. It goes through the mountains to [[Dayuling]] ({{lang|zh|大禹嶺}}) which is the highest point of the route. Here another branch of the highway runs south from Dayuling to [[Wushe]] ({{lang|zh|霧社}}). Continuing east from Dayuling, the highway goes down into [[Taroko National Park]]. It passes through [[Guanyuan]] ({{lang|zh|關原}}), [[Cih-en]] ({{lang|zh|慈恩}}), [[Luoshao]] ({{lang|zh|洛韶}}) and [[Tiansiang]] ({{lang|zh|天祥}}) before entering [[Taroko Gorge]]. After the gorge the road then meets the eastern coastal [[Su'ao-Hualien Highway]]. ==Closing the damaged highway== The highway goes through mountains. Rocks often fall and there can be landslides. Heavy rain from [[typhoon]]s often push soil and rocks onto the highway so people cannot drive through parts of it. [[Earthquake]]s also damage the highway. On September 21, 1999 the [[921 earthquake|Jiji earthquake]] caused a lot of damage to the highway and cut it in many places between Dongshih and Li