Is it true that, starting in April, any scooters will no longer be allowed to be parked on certain sidewalks in Greater Kaohsiung? In response to an angry mob of scooter owners, the Greater Kaohsiung Transportation Bureau says that the initiative will only be carried out initially for sidewalks less than 3m wide. According to statistics, around 4,600 parking spaces for scooters will be removed. As long as safety is not obstructed, parking spaces for scooters on sidewalks at least 3m wide will not be removed, meaning that about 300,000 of such parking spaces will not be affected.
Over the past two years, the bureau has gradually implemented its policy for removing scooters from sidewalks around the municipality’s five main commercial districts and its 20 schools and colleges. This year the bureau will continue giving impetus to the initiative in areas around Greater Kaohsiung’s 14 hospitals and major thoroughfares, working hard to improve scooter parking.
In order to keep scooters from being parked on sidewalks and help guide people to park at roadsides in an orderly fashion, the bureau amended Greater Kaohsiung’s major points for regulating orderly scooter parking in the municipality at the end of January. The bureau then announced that starting on April 1 it will gradually start implementing the new initiative around mass transit and commercial street areas.
Photo: Ke You-hau, Liberty Times
照片：自由時報記者葛祐豪
With an estimated 2.2 million scooters, Greater Kaohsiung has more scooters than any other municipality in the nation. Since word about the initiative got out, a surge of scooter owners expressed disapproval because they assumed it means scooters will be removed from all sidewalks.
The bureau’s Parking Management Center last week explained that if a sidewalk is more than 3m wide or roadside parking does not offer enough space, scooters can still be parked on the sidewalk as long as it does not pose a safety risk. Apart from sections of road with public signage prohibiting parking, scooters will still be allowed to be parked on sidewalks without parking stripes that are located in front of local tenement buildings (qilou) which are managed by the owner. This means that the more than 300,000 parking spaces for scooters located in front of tenement buildings, on sidewalks or roadsides will not be affected by the initiative.
The center says that the initiative, which goes into effect in April, is only for sidewalks that are less than 3m wide. An investigation of scooter-parking supply and demand will also be conducted, the center says, adding that suitable roadside parking spaces will be arranged first, with an estimated 4,600 parking spaces for scooters set to be removed.
(Liberty Times, Translated by Kyle Jeffcoat)
高雄市四月起機車全面退出人行道？機車族罵聲不斷，交通局解釋是先針對寬度未達三公尺的人行道實施，統計約有四千六百格機車格將取消；至於人行道寬度超過三公尺者，在不妨礙安全下，仍可留設機車格，約有三十萬格以上的機車停車空間，暫未受到影響。
交通局這兩年陸續於五大商圈、二十所大專院校周邊，實施機車退出人行道，今年持續在十四所醫院及市區主要幹道周邊推動，有效改善機車停車秩序。
為避免機車亂停在人行道，導引到路邊依序停放，交通局今年一月底修訂「高雄市政府整理機車慢車停放秩序實施要點」，宣布將從四月一日起優先於市區大眾運輸便利、商業路段逐步實施。
高雄市約有兩百二十多萬輛機車，數量居全國第一，消息一出，很多機車族以為機車將全面退出人行道，這段期間反彈聲浪很大。
交通局停管中心上週特別解釋，寬度超過三公尺的人行道，若路邊空間不足，在不妨礙安全下，仍可依規定留設機車格；人行道上若沒有格位，除公告禁停路段外，得停放於騎樓（由所有權人管理），因此市區現有位於騎樓、人行道及道路可停車區域約三十萬格以上的機車停車空間，都暫時未受影響。
停管中心強調，四月起實施機車退出人行道，是指寬度未達三公尺的人行道，將進行供需調查，先於路邊規劃適當停車空間，統計約有四千六百格人行道的機車格會取消。
（自由時報記者葛祐豪）
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