While the congestion pricing scheme appears to have failed to ease the heavy traffic on the Chiang Wei-Shui Freeway (Freeway No. 5) on the first weekend of its trial, the National Freeway Bureau said yesterday that it would make an assessment from the data collected in the four-week test operation before deciding whether it would continue implementing the policy.
The bureau is testing different toll-pricing schemes for peak and off-peak hours because the limited capacity of the Hsuehshan Tunnel connecting New Taipei City and Yilan County has led to constant congestion during holiday periods.
During the trial, motorists driving on Freeway No. 5 pay a 50 percent higher toll if they drive south during the peak hours between 6am and 12pm on Saturdays.
Photo: CNA
Those driving north during the off-peak hours between 6am and 12pm on Sundays are to pay a toll 50 percent lower.
People driving south during off-peak hours on Saturdays, as well as those driving north during peak hours on Sundays, pay the usual tolls.
The assumption was that some drivers might be motivated to travel during off-peak hours because they would pay less in freeway tolls.
Though the bureau previously estimated — from a pre-trial survey — that the differential pricing scheme could divert 3 to 19 percent of the traffic from peak hours to off-peak hours, results on the first weekend of the trial were disappointing.
Statistics from the bureau showed the new scheme helped divert only 3 to 5 percent of the traffic from peak hours to off-peak hours on Saturday, with vehicles still queuing up on the southbound lanes of Freeway No. 5 on Saturday morning.
While drivers were told they could pay 50 percent less on toll fees if they chose to return north on Sunday morning, the traffic volume increased by just 5 percent yesterday morning.
The bureau’s traffic control center also showed that northbound traffic was relatively smoother before 10am yesterday, with the average driving speed exceeding 80kph.
However, the traffic began to slow down after 10am.
By 11:30am, cars driving from Toucheng (頭城) to Pinglin (坪林) had slowed down to less than 50kph.
Bureau Traffic Management Department Director Leu Wen-yuh (呂文玉) said it would analyze the traffic data after the four-week trial and determine whether the new pricing scheme makes any difference.
Facing questions on the effectiveness of the pricing scheme in diverting traffic flow, the bureau said that Freeway No. 5 reaches its maximum capacity when the average speed drops to between 40kph and 50kph. This means that some drivers would still get on the freeway even if that means they would be stuck in traffic.
Aside from the congestion pricing scheme, the bureau added that the Yilan County Government and other transport systems should offer drivers incentives to reduce traffic on the freeways.
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