Starting July 1, passengers using smart cards must swipe twice when taking public buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, the Taipei Public Transportation Office said yesterday.
The decision was made to avoid confusion about whether passengers should swipe the card when getting on or off the bus, the office said.
The policy is to be implemented in two phases. In the first phase, which is to begin on July 1 and last for six months, passengers who swipe twice can join a prize lottery.
Photo: Taipei Times
The second phase is to begin on Feb. 1 next year. Passengers who forget to swipe their card twice would not be eligible for a discount when they transfer from bus to Taipei’s MRT metropolitan railway system or YouBike within an hour.
Bus fares would not change with the implementation of the new policy, the office said
For example, NT$15 would be deducted from the card on the first swipe when a passenger gets on the bus, but no fee would be deducted when the card is swiped again when the passenger leaves the bus.
For two-section fares, two NT$15 fares would be charged as is the current practice.
Separately, the Taipei Department of Transportation yesterday said it has applied for compulsory enforcement measures against Singapore-based stationless bicycle-sharing system oBike for the more than NT$7.33 million (US$233,291) it owes the city government for towing and keeping bikes that were illegally parked.
As of Monday, a total of 5,714 oBikes had been removed from the streets, the department said.
Department and legal officials on Wednesday last week confirmed that the company ceased all operations in Taipei last month and its office was emptied, so it has requested enforcement measures to deal with the case.
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