It is a common occurrence. You are waiting for the bus in the pouring rain. From a distance, your bus approaches. But before you can get on the vehicle, you are splashed with dirty water from deep puddles in the express lane.
Most of Taipei City's express lanes are in poor condition but repairs for some will not likely be made until the middle of next year at the earliest, city officials say.
Out of seven express lanes scattered throughout the city, just two of them have been overhauled since Taipei City Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) took office in 1998.
While the mayor has made many other campaign promises related to cleaning up Taipei's streets and sidewalks, improving the condition of bus lanes was never high on his list.
Critics say that this is the reason why so little has been done.
The city is planning to fix three more lanes but the overhaul projects -- which usually take about six months -- are not scheduled to take place until the beginning of next year.
"I don't think the city gives a damn about how many holes there are on the road as long as nobody gets hurt or killed," said DPP City Councilor Lee Chien-chung (李建昌).
Chang Ya-hui (張雅惠), a 28-year-old working woman who used to take the bus to work but now takes the MRT, said that she has been splashed with dirty water while waiting for a bus in the bus express lane.
"I wanted to smash the bus and kill the driver on the spot," she said.
The city blames circumstances.
According to Lin Li-yu (
"Because buses are heavier than regular automobiles, they create more friction on the road when they come to a stop or start moving," she said. "Their loading capacity also creates substantial pressure on the area where the wheels travel."
Most bus express lanes are 3.5m wide, leaving only an additional meter of space. Buses are 2.5m wide. A fully loaded 40-person bus can weigh as much as 15 tonnes. During peak periods, about 150 buses travel on an express lane every hour.
Lin also said that oil leaking from the bus can easily trigger a chemical reaction with the asphalt, which is partly responsible for the deterioration in road quality.
The city first established express bus lanes along Jenai and Hsinyi road in 1991. By 1996, eight lanes had been established. From north to south they are on Minchuan East and West roads and Nanking East and West roads. From west to east they are on Chungshan North and South roads, Hsinsheng North and South roads, Sungchiang Road and Tunhua North and South roads.
Chungshan North Road later became an express bus lane only during rush hours.
The lane on Nanking East Road is currently the busiest, with more than 200 buses an hour jamming the road during rush hours.
"That's why we don't allow other kinds of buses to use this particular lane," said Hung Tsang-lang (
Long-distance buses or public buses of schools or government agencies are allowed to travel on the express lanes along Tunhua, Jenai and Hsinyi Roads if they have permission from the city's transportation bureau.
Those who do not have the permission but use express bus lanes face fines of between NT$600 and NT$1,800.
The city started to overhaul the express lanes in 1997. To strengthen the lanes the city switched from asphalt to concrete and rebar.
"While asphalt pavements last between three to five years, pavement which uses concrete and rebar can last for over 10 years," Hung said.
Express bus lanes also help commuters save travelling time, Hung said.
"While buses travel between 30kph and 40kph on express lanes, motor vehicles travel between 20kph and 35kph on regular roads," he said.
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
NOVEL METHODS: The PLA has adopted new approaches and recently conducted three combat readiness drills at night which included aircraft and ships, an official said Taiwan is monitoring China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) exercises for changes in their size or pattern as the nation prepares for president-elect William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration on May 20, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday. Tsai made the comment at a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, in response to Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-yu’s (王定宇) questions. China continues to employ a carrot-and-stick approach, in which it applies pressure with “gray zone” tactics, while attempting to entice Taiwanese with perks, Tsai said. These actions aim to help Beijing look like it has
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,