The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) yesterday dismissed a media report that said Taiwan has the highest rate of traffic fatalities among the world’s developed countries.
Hsieh Chao-i (謝潮儀), executive secretary of the Road Traffic Safety Committee, said one of the committee’s division chiefs had provided incorrect statistics in a presentation to a forum on Wednesday.
Hsieh gave reporters the latest statistics from the International Road Federation on motor vehicle fatalities in several countries: On average, the number of deaths per 10,000 vehicles in China was 7.92, 3.77 in Canada, 2.52 in France, 2.44 in Singapore, 2.38 in Hong Kong, 1.71 in the US, 1.57 in Italy and 1.56 in Taiwan.
PHOTO: REUTERS
“She [the division chief] volunteered to attend the forum, but she simply cited the wrong information,” Hsieh said.
Hsieh said it was inappropriate to compare the traffic fatality rate in Taiwan with that in European countries and Japan because they do not have as many motorcycles as Taiwan.
“Some of the countries in Southeast Asia, such as Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam, may also have high death rates,” Hsieh said. “But these countries do not have databases on traffic accidents.”
American Institute of Taiwan (AIT) Director William Stanton said on Tuesday that eating US beef was safer than riding a motorcycle in Taiwan when defending the safety of US beef.
A story published in yesterday’s Chinese-language United Daily News quoted the statistics provided by the division chief of the Road Traffic Safety Committee to back Stanton’s point.
The story said 60 out of 100 traffic accidents in Taiwan were caused by motorcycles, 1.6 times higher than in France.
In 2007, 2,573 persons died in traffic accidents in Taiwan, with 64 percent of fatalities involving motorcycles and scooters.
Civil society groups yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan, decrying Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) efforts to pass three major bills that they said would seriously harm Taiwan’s democracy, and called to oust KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁). It was the second night of the three-day “Bluebird wintertime action” protests in Taipei, with organizers announcing that 8,000 people attended. Organized by Taiwan Citizen Front, the Economic Democracy Union (EDU) and a coalition of civil groups, about 6,000 people began a demonstration in front of KMT party headquarters in Taipei on Wednesday, organizers said. For the third day, the organizers asked people to assemble
Taipei is participating in Osaka’s Festival of Lights this year, with a 3m-tall bubble tea light installation symbolizing Taiwan’s bubble tea culture. The installation is designed as a bubble tea cup and features illustrations of Taipei’s iconic landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Red House and North Gate, as well as soup dumplings and the matchmaking deity the Old Man Under the Moon (月下老人), affectionately known as Yue Lao (月老). Taipei and Osaka have collaborated closely on tourism and culture since Taipei first participated in the festival in 2018, the Taipei City Department of Information and Tourism said. In February, Osaka represented
POOR IMPLEMENTATION: Teachers welcomed the suspension, saying that the scheme disrupted school schedules, quality of learning and the milk market A policy to offer free milk to all school-age children nationwide is to be suspended next year due to multiple problems arising from implementation of the policy, the Executive Yuan announced yesterday. The policy was designed to increase the calcium intake of school-age children in Taiwan by drinking milk, as more than 80 percent drink less than 240ml per day. The recommended amount is 480ml. It was also implemented to help Taiwanese dairy farmers counter competition from fresh milk produced in New Zealand, which is to be imported to Taiwan tariff-free next year when the Agreement Between New Zealand and
Taiwanese professional baseball should update sports stadiums and boost engagement to enhance fans’ experience, Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) commissioner Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) in an interview on Friday. The league has urged Farglory Group and the Taipei City Government to improve the Taipei Dome’s outdated equipment, including relatively rudimentary television and sound systems, and poor technology, he said. The Tokyo Dome has markedly better television and sound systems, despite being 30 years old, because its managers continually upgraded its equipment, Tsai said. In contrast, the Taipei Dome lacked even a room for referees
RSS