Starting on Jan. 1, Taipei is to introduce a monthly pass for unlimited rides on its MRT railway system, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said yesterday.
The initiative is aimed at encouraging greater use of public transportation and cutting costs for lower-income workers who have to commute from suburban areas to the city’s center, he said.
“It is mostly poor people who live in the suburban areas,” Ko said. “It does not make sense to punish them with higher transportation costs.”
He said residents of areas such as New Taipei City’s Sinjhuang (新莊) and Tamsui (淡水) districts spend a significant amount of time commuting to Taipei, and “should not have to pay a lot of money to commute.”
In a three-month pilot program, the passes are to be sold at NT$2,500 each and would be valid for unlimited rides on the MRT for one month, Ko said.
After three months, the city is to review the program and decide whether to expand it to include public bus rides in New Taipei City and Keelung, Ko said.
He said one of the goals of introducing the unlimited monthly pass is to reduce pollution by encouraging motorcyclists to use the MRT instead.
“We will see how it works when the initial results are in,” Ko said in response to questions on whether the NT$2,500 price is low enough to convince commuters to switch from low-cost scooters.
Any type of reform has to be assessed in stages, Ko said, promising that MRT fares would not be increased during his term as mayor.
Ko indicated that he might consider using the revenue from parking fees to help fund the city’s public transportation system, which he said is being operated on the tenets of sharing, use of “green” energy and use of Internet technology.
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