The Taipei Department of Transportation is holding raffles to stimulate residents’ willingness to resume taking public transportation after a COVID-19-induced ridership slump.
Prizes include an iPhone Pro Max, two sets of AirPod Pros, a Nintendo Switch console and a MacBook Pro, the department said.
Public transportation ridership declined sharply in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and has not fully recovered, Taipei City Government data showed.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei City Government
Only 20 to 30 percent of Taipei and New Taipei City residents used public transportation from May 15 to July 26 last year amid a nationwide COVID-19 outbreak, the data showed.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) told a news conference on Friday that the department hopes that the raffle would encourage residents to resume taking public transportation, saying that it would help reduce carbon emissions and alleviate traffic congestion.
The raffle is part of Taipei’s goal to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050, he added.
The event would feature different raffles for users of the MRT metropolitan railway system, bus lines in municipal Taipei and the YouBike system, the city government said.
People who wish to participate in the city bus raffle can register their EasyCard on the event’s Web site before swiping the card upon entering a bus in the two cities before June 30, it said.
Students, people with disabilities and elderly residents would have a higher chance of winning, it added.
Two bus passengers per month would win a 14 inch 512G MacBook Pro, it said.
The YouBike raffle would run through December, and people riding the bikes on 11 or more days per month would be eligible, the city government said.
This month’s prize is a box of eggrolls from Syin Lu Social Welfare Foundation, it said, adding that the prizes would change every two to three months.
People who wish to participate in the MRT raffle, which also runs through December, can register their EasyCard on the Taipei MRT Go app, it said.
The MRT raffle would this month and next month include a daily draw for a six-entry ticket for the Taipei Children’s Amusement Park, the city government said, adding that monthly prizes include themed EasyCards, toy cars with pull-back motors and Nintendo Switch consoles.
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