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Taipei restricted parking regulations to be amended

Starting in September, motorists parking in restricted parking spaces will be fined NT$600 if they overstay the one-hour limit and forget to add extra money after their time expires, according to the Parking Management Office of the Taipei City Government.

To make parking fee payment more convenient, the Office has replaced 2,000 roadside parking meters with EasyCard reader machines since February. The Office, however, has not issued any citation to motorists exceeding the one-hour limit since the replacement.

The Office also announced that riders parking in spaces reserved for motorcycles around Taipei Main Station will now be charged NT$20 each time they do so. The fee will be levied Monday through Saturday from 9am to 5pm. The policy will also become effective in September.

Chang Jiun-ming (張俊明), sub-section chief of the Office's on-road parking management, said the Office's on-road staff will not bill motorists whose time expires before the policy takes effect in September. Meanwhile, the office will publicize the new policy by distributing fliers to motorists over the next two months.

Chang said the Office is considering offering more three-hour parking spaces in town in addition to the existing one-hour parking spaces, adding that one-hour parking spaces will not be abolished.

"Restricted parking spaces are mostly located near post offices, banks or office buildings," he said.

"Our study has shown that 80 percent of users of these spaces will usually finish their business within an hour or so. So there is still a need for one-hour parking spaces," he said.

Chang said that the number of EasyCard machines will be increased from 2,000 to 5,000 by the end of the year. Coin-operated meters will be phased out, he said.

Chang emphasized that the policy is aimed at increasing the turnover rate of cars in downtown areas to relieve parking problems.

The Office also said that motorists requesting receipts for parking fees can now download and print all transactions from five days to three months ago by going to the Web site of the parking management office (www.pma.taipei.gov.tw) and typing in their EasyCard number and license plate number.

The service will become available to the public today.
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