Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow- yen (盧秀燕) on Friday announced the city’s plan to offer residents a NT$299 (US$9.75) monthly public transport pass from June as part of a central government project to subsidize public transport.
The pass, which is to cost NT$599 for non-residents, would allow unlimited travel on public transport in Taichung, including city buses, rented bicycles and mass rapid transit (MRT) lines, Lu said.
Also available would be an intercity travel pass, which costs NT$699 for Taichung residents and NT$999 for non-residents, she said.
Photo: Su Meng-chuan, Taipei Times
The intercity travel pass would allow unlimited travel on public transport across Taichung and neighboring Changhua, Nantou and Miaoli counties, covering local city/intercity buses, MRT lines, Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) trains and bicycle-sharing services.
The Taichung City government said it is also working to expand the area covered by intercity travel services by encouraging the participation of other local governments, such as Hsinchu city and county, Yunlin County and Chiayi City.
The central government project to promote public transport, which includes similar fare subsidies in northern and southern Taiwan, is part of the Cabinet’s disbursement of a NT$380 billion tax surplus last year, but still needs to be approved by the legislature.
The Kaohsiung City Government has said it plans to introduce next month a NT$399 monthly public transport pass for unlimited travel on the Kaohsiung MRT, light rail, city buses, ferries and bicycle-sharing service.
Kaohsiung, Tainan and Pingtung County are also looking to introduce a joint NT$999 monthly pass that would allow unlimited travel between the three destinations via TRA trains and intercity buses.
A NT$1,200 monthly public transport pass serving Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan and Keelung is also likely to be introduced in July, providing unlimited travel on the Taipei and Taoyuan MRT, city buses, bicycles and TRA.
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