Police in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和) yesterday said they for the first time fined someone for driving a mini electric two-wheeled vehicle while under the influence of drugs.
The New Taipei City Police Department said they fined a 58-year-old man, surnamed Lu (呂), who walked into the Jisui Police Station at about 4pm on Friday and told an officer he wanted to turn himself in.
Lu hoped to break his drug addiction, and handed over a bag of amphetamines and a pipe, police said.
Photo copied by CNA
The man was searched and questioned, and police prepared to turn him over to prosecutors for drug possession, they said.
Police also administered a rapid saliva test to determine whether Lu, who had ridden a mini electric two-wheeled vehicle to the station, had driven while impaired by drugs, the police said.
When the test came back positive for amphetamines, police issued Lu a citation, which was the first time New Taipei City fined someone for driving a mini electric two-wheeled vehicle while under the influence of drugs, the department said.
Mini electric two-wheeled vehicles are vehicles between a standard motorcycle or motor scooter and an electric bicycle. Drivers only have to be 14 years old, meaning that a driver’s license is not required, although owners must obtain a license plate and insurance.
Under the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例), such vehicles are defined as mainly powered by electricity, with a maximum speed of 25 kilometers per hour or less, and a weight of at least 40kg without a battery and 60kg with a battery.
Under the act, driving a slow-moving vehicle — such as a bicycle, electric bicycle, mini electric two-wheeled vehicle, personal mobility device or an animal-driven vehicle — while under the influence of drugs or alcohol is punishable by a fine of between NT$1,200 and NT$2,400. The vehicle would also be impounded.
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
RSS