Drivers who encounter heavy traffic and fatigue during the Lunar New Year holiday might need an under-utilized feature of the national freeway — drivers’ lounges.
The government opened the first drivers’ lounges in 1982, but closed them all in 1991 as operational costs far exceeded the nominal fees charged for their use, the Freeway Bureau said.
To reduce the number of road traffic accidents related to driver fatigue, the government began gradually opening new drivers’ lounges in October 2011.
Photo courtesy of the Freeway Bureau via CNA
Fourteen of the 15 freeway service areas — all except the Shiding service area on Chiang Wei-shui Memorial Freeway (Freeway No. 5) — have drivers’ lounges, which have been used more than 540,000 times as of the end of last year, the bureau said.
While open to all, the lounges on the National Sun Yat-sen Freeway (National Freeway No. 1) typically attract truckers and business travelers, while those on the Formosa Freeway (National Freeway No. 3) — such as Cingshuei service area in Taichung and Sihu service area in Miaoli — draw more leisure travelers, the bureau said.
Freeway Bureau section chief Tsai Hsin-yuan (蔡欣宛) said the contractors operating the rest areas have steadily improved the quality of the lounges.
All 14 lounges, minus Yilan County’s Suao (蘇澳), provide all-hours services, with some equipped with amenities such as showers and massage chairs.
The lounge in Yunlin County’s Siluo service area even has washing machines and dryers, Tsai said.
The facilities vary by location, she said.
Some offer individual rooms, while others are separated only by curtains, Tsai said, adding that some have reclining chairs instead of beds.
To use the lounges, drivers must present an ID at the check-in counter, or inquire at the service area’s convenience store during late hours, Tsai said.
Drivers can use the lounge for up to two hours for free, she said.
The bureau said that during the Lunar Holiday Period, the lounges would only be open from 8am to 8pm daily.
To maintain parking space turnover, lounge usage time would also be cut to 30 minutes, with one extension possible, the bureau said.
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