In the over 200 years since Wu Sha opened up the Lanyang Plain to settlement, the qianggu at Toucheng has been performed only irregularly. In the current period of budget constraints, many have continued to call for the cancellation of the rites, which can cost tens of millions of NT dollars.
吳沙「開蘭」（蘭陽平原）二百多年，頭城搶孤幾經停辦又接續，在地方財政普遍吃緊的今年，活動經費高達新台幣上千萬元的搶孤活動，停辦的風聲一直不斷。