The government aims to better protect pedestrians by expanding the distance between pedestrian crossings and vehicle stop lines, Ministry of Transportation and Communications officials said.
The revision to the Regulations on Establishing Traffic Signs and Indicating Lines (道路交通標誌標線號誌設置規則) was proposed after Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told lawmakers it would be a national shame if pedestrians were hit by motor vehicles while walking on pedestrian crossings.
The revision would widen the gap between crossings and vehicle stop lines from the current width of 1m to 3m, to 2m to 3m.
Photo: CNA
Ministry officials said they aim to complete the revision of the regulations in June and begin inspecting local governments’ compliance by the third quarter.
A ministry survey found that pedestrian crossings and vehicle stop lines at most localities are separated by at least 1m, but some are less than 1m apart.
If vehicle stop lines are too close to pedestrian crossings, pedestrians would feel pressured when crossing the streets, while drivers of trucks or other large vehicles might not see pedestrians crossing in their blind spots, the ministry said.
Studies from the Institute of Transportation, the ministry’s think tank, showed that the distance between pedestrian crossings and vehicle stop lines is 1m to 3m in Japan, 2m in Sweden, 2m to 3m in South Korea, 3m in Singapore and the UK, while the US has a minimum of 1.2m.
Highways and Road Safety Deputy Director-General Huang Yun-kui (黃運貴) said that all local governments must follow the revised regulations once implementation starts.
Every locality would be asked to identify intersections where pedestrian crossings and vehicle stop lines are less than 1m apart and submit plans to address them before the end of this year, he said.
Aside from random inspections conducted by the ministry, people can also report localities that do not follow revised regulations, he added.
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