In an effort to solve the traffic jam around Gongguan (
The city government has been under attack for the traffic chaos that resulted from the launch of the bus lanes on Roosevelt Road. During the traffic meeting at the city hall yesterday, Taipei Deputy Mayor King Pu-tsung (
"The transportation department should learn from this experience ... I have suggested that the police form a patrol to reinforce the ban on temporary parking," King said during the meeting yesterday.
Taipei City transportation head Jason Lin (林志盈) apologized again yesterday for the oversight on traffic capacity, but argued in favor of the new bus lane policy.
"We did not treat the public like guinea pigs. This is a policy that we have planned for a long time ? Although there is an MRT station on Roosevelt Road, buses are still necessary," he said, adding that traffic has improved over the past two days.
The Roosevelt Road bus lane is the ninth bus lane launched by the city. With another one on Zhong-xiao East and West roads slated to be launched in August, transportation experts said that the department should have learned its lesson in adjusting bus routes and begin promoting the new bus lanes early to prevent the same problem from recurring.
"Buses that run in the exclusive lanes should be running an arterial route, rather than going around and making many circuits," Luo Shiaw-shyan (羅孝賢), a transportation professor at Tamkang University, said yesterday during a tour of the Roosevelt Road bus lane.
The bus lane on Zhongxiao East and West roads is the city's traffic hub. Luo suggested that the city government adjust most of the bus routes and have as many buses as possible use this exclusive lane.
While the government is responsible for improving the city's traffic, Chang Sheng-hsiung (張勝雄), chair of transportation management at Tamkang University, said residents should also share the responsibility by making more use of public transportation.
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