There is obvious reason for concern. Movement in the city is basic to the lives of each resident, directly or indirectly affecting everyone's activities. And according to a recent public opinion poll conducted in Taipei, local citizens now want the city government to give first priority to improving the traffic situation.
The shift in attitude comes as little surprise, for the sheer volume of traffic has become overwhelming in recent years. This has been a function of both the city's rapid population growth, and a soaring standard of living which has made it possible for more people to buy private automobiles. Taiwan residents are no different from their peers abroad who want the convenience and the status of private car ownership.
Taipei's population has increased a minimum of two percent per year since 1978, when it already had a population of slightly over two million. The increase in automobile ownership during the same time, however, has been phenomenal. This is especially true in the past five years with the latest surge of foreign exchange holdings and the government's relaxation of import duties on foreign cars. Local manufacture of high-quality vehicles has also surged in recent years, making the somewhat more reasonably priced local products even more attractive to buyers seeking their first automobile.
These changes have produced jammed roadways. In 1978, there were only 67,482 automobiles registered in Taipei, roughly one for every 32 people. This number increased to 191,987 in 1985, exhibiting a total growth rate of 184 percent, and shifting the proportion to one auto for every 13 people.
But private cars are only a small part of the picture. The number of registered motorcycles and taxis in Taipei increased 110 percent and 29.4 percent respectively during the same period of time. Even in the late 1970s it was common to see more bicycles on the road than automobiles, and only slightly more motorcycles than the previous decade. This has changed radically. Now bicycles are common only on campuses, and even students are making the shift to scooters and larger motorcycles.
While the density of vehicular traffic continues to build inexorably toward a total plenum on the city's streets, the government response to the problem of overcrowding has been unable to keep pace. Even though the past decade has seen the road area of the city increased 35 percent—going from 5.5 to about 7.5 square miles—Taipei is losing ground in the congestion battle.
At present, there are 68 square yards of road space per vehicle in Taipei. This compares with 313 square yards in 1968 when Taipei had just been transferred to the direct jurisdiction of the Executive Yuan (Cabinet). This figure is becoming rapidly more unfavorable. Traffic grid lock could come within a few years if unchecked by effective planning and action.
Traffic congestion during peak hours is a common phenomenon in every big city around the world. The problem with Taipei is that every hour resembles a rush hour, while the traditional morning and evening times of heaviest traffic now create levels of congestion just this side of maddening.
The number of vehicles vying for the same space is but one part of the problem, however, and in some ways is not the most serious difficulty. Residents and visitors alike know that there are two additional ingredients in the Taipei traffic stew that add special spice: a highly-mixed content of traffic now, and a wholesale disregard for traffic rules and regulations.
Taipei's main traffic problem is not yet private automobiles. Beyond the seemingly ubiquitous scooters and motorcycles, there are currently more than 30,000 taxis and another 3,500 buses that operate on the same street network. This variety of transportation alone tangles the Taipei traffic picture enough, but things are even more complex because there is a skewing of what is normally considered typical use for these vehicles.
In reference to this problem, Chang Chia-juch, professor and director of the Institute of Transportation and Traffic Studies at National Chiao Tung University, says that Taiwan's rapid social and economic transformation over the past decade has created unique transition problems for local traffic.
"For instance," Chang says, "motorcycles are often used for medium- or long-distance transportation, and local bus routes often exceed suitable distances and travel time, which are normally considered to be nine miles and one hour of riding time. Moreover, the mixed sorts of vehicles using the same roadways make street designs that are common in foreign countries totally unsuitable for the traffic now situation in Taipei."
There are deeper sociological reasons as well behind the traffic problems. "The pace of economic growth over the past two decades has far exceeded the ability of society to adjust at an equal pace," Chang adds. "As a result, the ways many people behave today are still strongly influenced by the mentality and habits inherited from the old agriculture-based society. That is to say, the public owned and started to operate motorcycles and automobiles on the streets long before they learned the proper ways to use them."
This is an interesting point substantiated by illuminating statistics. Studies have shown that the average experience of local drivers is relatively low. For example, of Taipei's small car and motorcycle owners, about 80 to 90 percent have less than ten years of driving or riding experience. And 50 to 60 percent of these have less than five years on the road. Obviously, this has considerable impact on the skills one faces at each intersection. "Many people on the streets today drive with the same mentality they had twenty years ago when they were riding their bicycles," Chang says.
Few people in Taipei would disagree with his assessment. Improper driving habits abound, and they are so numerous that it is difficult even to number the categories of problems a driver normally encounters after only half an hour on the road. The more common of these include arbitrary changing of lanes, four streams of vehicles moving on three-lane streets, motorcycles running in lanes reserved for automobiles (and often the reverse—cars squeezing through motorcycle lanes), jumping green lights by full seconds before the signal changes, occupying left- or right-turn exclusive lanes with no intention of turning, not giving way to pedestrians in crosswalks, making turns in front of and across several lanes of oncoming traffic, random stopping in rights of way, and so on into endless nightmarish situations.
Yet not everyone sees the traffic as an abomination. In fact, some foreigners even have a surprising tolerance for the situation. Charmian Martin, an English-woman who has lived in Taipei for one and half years, evaluates the local scene with a touch of irony:
"Taipei's traffic is hilarious. I love it. One of my favorite things is taking a taxi ride and watching the hair-raising maneuvers of the other drivers, especially taxi drivers and motorcyclists. People do U-turns in the face of on-coming traffic, squeeze a fourth lane where there should only be three, cut in with less than an inch to spare, zoom left or right across the nearside lane if they see a short cut to turn down—they must be the worst, and the best, drivers in the world. Drivers here do things that would cause list lights in my country, yet hardly anyone even hoots."
Sun Kuan-han, a local writer, has given a more scathing analysis of today's traffic. He says that for all intents and purposes "there are no driving regulations in Taiwan." lie adds, "Actually, when you observe and think of it in a precise way, you will find that 'there is order in the disorder' of driving in Taipei, and that these regulations are made by drivers themselves and every driver follows them."
As might be expected, the rules are different from what might be considered optimum. Sun says the self-generated regulations actually consist of only two articles: "There are no other drivers besides themselves nor traffic regulations beyond their own, and other drivers are stupid and they alone are clever. In short, the two rules just make drivers 'exceedingly selfish' and 'blindly ignorant.'" These attitudes toward driving contribute heavily to the chaos created daily on Taipei's streets.
But what about traffic enforcement? What role do the men and women of the police department play in all this? Huang Hai, chief of the Traffic Section at the Taipei City Police Headquarters, speaks of the dilemma that traffic policemen often find themselves caught in: "When people are stopped for violating traffic regulations, they often become cynical and say 'Why aren't you out arresting thieves and robbers instead of being so strict about traffic violations?' On the other hand, as soon as there is a traffic jam or an accident, people start condemning the traffic police for ineffectiveness and argue that 'If you only enforced traffic regulations rigorously, Taipei's traffic wouldn't be such a mess.' These double standards discourage everyone responsible for traffic regulation enforcement."
Professor Chang attributes part of the traffic problem to slow progress in the field of traffic management itself. "Traffic and transportation management systems weren't introduced to Taiwan until 10 or 15 years ago. Therefore, we are weak in transportation engineering design, formulation of traffic regulations, and experience in traffic control. For instance, many drivers complain about the placement of traffic control devices, particularly traffic signs and signals. "
A trip around the city shows why. In many intersections, traffic signs are located at different positions so that drivers are never sure where to look for them. Even after finding the signs, however, there are more difficulties. Some traffic information signs-such as those regulating turns or freeway entrances—have too many words for the drivers to read without slowing down or stopping altogether. Elsewhere, left- or right-turn arrows at various intersections are located in different spots, or are even arranged differently on the light pole itself. These foibles all seem planned to confuse the situation rather than alleviate it.
Before too much pity is extended to drivers trying to find signal lights at busy intersections, observers must also remember the poor pedestrian in Taipei. Some would say that Taipei's pedestrians are the most pitiable of all. Transport construction and design has given priority to vehicular traffic. Pedestrians are "removed" either to overhead walkways that bridge busy intersections or to underground passages that go below the streets. The old and infirm have no concessions. Either they climb up and down stairs, or do not cross the street. Vehicles are king.
One foreigner, who has just emerged on the north side of Nanking Road in central Taipei after walking down 28 steps and then up another 27 in order to cross the street, says that the extra exercise is less welcome during the humid summer months, "but it sure beats being crushed by a bus."
Those streets that do have cross-walks on ground level rarely have pedestrian signals. And if they are installed, the chances are very strong that they do not work. And even if they work, they are designed so pedestrians have to share a signal phase with right- or left-turn vehicles. This seriously threatens pedestrian safety.
But, pedestrians have problems beyond crossing the streets. Inconvenience on the sidewalks is a way of life. While many sidewalks are blocked, by parked motorcycles and much of the remaining space is occupied by streetside vendors or store displays that have spilled out the front doors of shops, there are greater challenges. The most worrisome is the motorcycle traffic. Motorcyclists have no question in their minds about sidewalks-they are additional roadways on which they have the right of way. In the heaviest of pedestrian walk areas it is as common as rain in May to see several motorcycles ramming through the crowd.
"Why complain," says a Taipei resident who has just dodged a careening Vespa scooter manned by two teenagers. "They make a lot of noise, so usually there is time to get out of the way. Besides, this is a one-way street going west, and they want to go east." There is a hidden wisdom behind these remarks perhaps not readily penetrable to the normal mind, but the bottom line remains the same: survival depends upon constant alertness.
Professor Chang adds yet another dimension to the background of local traffic problems: "In the past, because of restricted government finances and a lack of trained traffic specialists, most of our transport-related construction has been linked to demands. Decisions are made to solve present problems instead of considering future, integrated development."
"On the other hand," Chang continues, "the country's transportation policies are not very definite either, and the lack of clearly set policies tends to make traffic agencies work at cross purposes. The net result is only marginal improvement in the short run without much success in reaching overall goals in the long run. "
The clearest illustration of these remarks can be found in Taipei's government and private bus systems, which are the only form of public mass transportation operating so far in the city. To most people, the systems deserve both praise and censure.
According to a survey conducted last year by the Bureau of Reconstruction of the Taipei City Government, of the more than 2.5 million people in the city, 1.6 million depend on daily bus transportation, and over half of the 1.5 million adults in Taipei are frequent bus passengers.
At present, nearly 3,500 buses operated by ten bus companies—including the biggest one operated by the City Government—have a total of 255 routes serving the metropolitan area. These statistics translate into impressive results. Taipei's buses handle 2.5 million passenger-trips per day—about 45 percent of the city's total transport volume—for a total distance of 328,600 miles. This is equivalent to circling the earth 13 times, and gives Taipei one of the world's highest daily averages for bus passengers.
"You can go by bus from almost any place in Taipei to another and use only one transfer at most," says Tang Hsueh-fang, deputy director of the Bureau of Reconstruction.
In spite of the incredibly convenient and wide-reaching bus routes, not many citizens are satisfied with the quality of their service. The most frequently heard complaints are "overcrowded," "slow," and the "bad altitudes of bus drivers."
Twice a day during rush hours, almost every city bus is full of people packed together like sardines. Since only a small portion of the buses are air-conditioned, the crowds and the summertime heat make riding the bus a form of torture for passengers, most of whom are students and middle-class office, retail, and factory workers.
The slowness of many bus trips can be attributed to the frequent stops along most routes. The distance between adjacent stops often is only 380 to 550 yards, and each bus stop normally services a number of bus routes. This density causes severe interference among the buses themselves, particularly during peak hours, and also interferes with other vehicular traffic simply because of its great bulk.
But the price is right: only US$0.30 per ride. While slightly more than a quarter for a bus ride that might last up to an hour is hard to complain about, there are other less favorable features about taking the bus.
People are often disgusted with the impoliteness—even rudeness—of many bus drivers. Given the traffic situation that these men battle for hours each day, the real surprise is that they are not stark raving mad instead of just occasionally irascible.
Yet credit and criticism should be given where they are due. While it is true that bus drivers face long working hours and extraordinary pressure from constant traffic, all bus companies would profit from any moves made by management to improve driver training. A recognizable subculture of driving habits has evolved around bus drivers, making their unique maneuvers more predictable by both pedestrians and others on the roads. Fast stops and starts are a specialty, the latter occurring frequently before passengers are fully aboard. These situations often lead to heated exchanges because of the safety questions as much as the concept of common courtesy.
One of the results of growing dissatisfaction among bus riders is a gradual abandonment of the public transportation system in favor of other means. Those previously content with the economical bus are now using their growing portions of disposable income to buy their own automobiles or motorcycles. While this pleases no end of salesmen, it in turn increases the volume of vehicles on the streets and retards general transportation speeds.
Many automobile motorcycle owners admit that if the buses were not so packed and so slow, they would not have expended the time and money to buy, maintain, and use private vehicles. Lung Tien-li, who is a professor in the Institute of Civil Engineering at National Taiwan University, advises that bus service should improve immediately and "meet the rising standards of living and expectations of Taipei's citizens." Otherwise, he claims, "the bus systems will lose even more passengers and private cars will literally overflow the available street space."
Much of the criticism, and occasional censure, lands on the doorstep of the Bureau of Reconstruction of the Taipei City Government, which is in charge of supervising the operation of city buses. Officials often feel somewhat powerless in face of the expanding problems.
Deputy Director Tang Hsueh-fang says, "It is not that we have no ideal ourselves; we also hope to establish a modern bus system. We are constantly working on improvement measures like refining routes, lengthening the distance between adjacent stops, establishing curb stops exclusively for bus use, acquiring newer and better buses, and so on. Of course, there's always a gap between the ideal and reality."
In fact, it is not easy for the city government to bring about changes as sweeping as the total rearrangement of bus routes because it involves coordination with nine companies beyond the city's own operation. About the only major success in recent years came in 1977. The city and companies united to form the Integrated Bus Service (IBS). So far this has meant only that a common ticket card can be used for all buses in the city.
Each of the ten companies still maintains independence in administrative affairs such as personnel, finance, and management. It is beyond the IBS's authority to mandate new bus purchases, improve maintenance procedures, or train bus drivers in service techniques. The result is diffusion of management responsibility, making change nearly impossible.
"Indeed, I really don't like to say too much about our bus operations because, practically speaking, we've almost done nothing," says Wang Chuan-fang, a professor at National Chiao Tung University and a traffic and transportation adviser to the Taipei City Government. He hastens to add, accurately, that "It's also true that no other city in the world has more convenient bus service than Taipei."
Wang points out that the traffic and transportation issue has become a major area of city government concern for several administrations. The current mayor and his staff are even more clearly aware of the problems than their predecessors—thanks to increased criticism and to the actual explosion of the traffic problem itself.
There has been some rather effective response. "Currently there are major traffic improvement plans underway, including expansion of existing transportation facilities, improvement of transportation system management, and " more comprehensive plans for balanced urban growth," Wang says. Several key projects are geared to alleviate some of the worst traffic snarls:
- An elevated expressway program for Taipei is under construction consisting of inner and outer loops. These high-speed roadways will have a total length of approximately 57 miles. The project is one-third finished.
- One long-term problem has been the railroad line that runs straight through the heart of the city's central business district. There are 13 at-grade crossings that seriously block traffic now throughout the day, including rush hours. The government has invested nearly US$600 million to put slightly more than three miles of the railway underground. The project is slated for completion in 1989.
- The most important construction project designed to enhance the public's ability to move around the city is the mass rapid transit (MRT) system. The proposed network consists of four trunk lines with a total length of 43.5 miles. Construction work will begin in the latter half of this year, and the total project should be completed in 12 years. Some people think it will be a real horserace between completion of the MRT and street-level gridlock. A 10-mile elevated medium-capacity transit system is also included in the project, which should meet travel demands for the new city zoo and the growing southern suburban area of Mucha.
Wang is also convener of the Taipei City Government's Road Traffic Supervisory Meeting, which has drawn up key measures that should bring some additional relief to traffic woes. Some major ones include the following:
- A one-way street program. In order to facilitate efficient traffic flow in alleys and smaller streets, an extensive program of one-way street changes is on tap. Planners expect that all alleys less than eight meters wide will be changed to one-way operations by the end of this year.
- Coordination of the traffic signal system. "Theoretically," Wang says, "if signals are randomly set, a driver is expected to hit five red lights in 10 successive signals. This number can been reduced to about three if the signals are coordinated." Currently, only 30 percent of the more than 600 intersections with signals in Taipei are coordinated with adjacent intersections. Within the next three years, all other city traffic lights will be placed under central computer-or microprocessor-based control.
- Regulation of roadside parking. According to Huang Hai of the Taipei City Police Headquarters, the city has only some 30,000 parking spaces; of these, 20,000 are roadside parking spaces. Since demand far exceeds supply, motorists who park illegally rarely receive tickets. Legal parking spots, however, are closely regulated and a recent increase in public street parking fees is expected to stimulate the construction of more off-street parking. If this in fact occurs, Huang points out, traffic should flow more efficiently and there would also be fewer parking problems. Because the whole city has only 13 public parking lots, this assessment appears optimistic in the extreme; parking is certain to become an increasingly difficult problem for city planners.
- Demonstration traffic artery program. Improvement of driving habits is a long process. In recognition of this, planners have selected ten major traffic arteries as closely regulated test areas. Their goal is to improve traffic flow by strictly enforcing traffic laws and stopping violators. Because these arteries are known to the public, drivers must learn to respect the law at least in these areas or suffer the consequences. The idea is that good driving habits may extend to other parts of the city as well without the heavy commitment of traffic officers. Currently eight of the ten proposed traffic arteries in this program are already being tested.
The problems are evident, but when it comes to answering them, where does the buck stop? Currently, the administrative responsibilities for transportation matters are divided among four agencies of the Taipei City Government: the Departments of Public Works, Reconstruction, Rapid Transit System, and Police Headquarters. This is not the optimum setup, for the lines of authority and the divisions of responsibility are not well defined, making coordination and decision-making particularly difficult. This, of course, is a problem faced by many metropolitan government administrations.
Moreover, the Road Traffic Supervisory Meeting that was set up on ad-hoc basis to oversee issues under the purview of the four agencies does not have its own staff and still operates as a temporary organization. As a result, it plays a weak role and exerts very little influence.
Officials are aware of the difficulty, and in order to improve the situation have proposed establishing a new umbrella agency with clear-cut responsibility for all transportation related affairs. The proposal is now being evaluated by the Executive Yuan.
Despite the wealth of problems facing traffic planners in Taipei, Professor Wang retains an optimistic attitude. "To me our society is much like the condition of a 12-year-old child—he may tear his clothes and get dirty playing, but he also makes progress and learns day by day. I think if everybody respects each other a bit more, our society as a whole may behave better on the streets. There are problems, and strategies proposed to cope with them. Yet strategies can only accomplish so much. The people themselves must learn."
Meanwhile, residents can be assured that near chaos will continue to be the daily status of Taipei's streets. When next dodging a bus or speeding taxi at an intersection, or stepping nimbly over vendor's goods and around parked motorcycles on the sidewalks, it may be some comfort to recall the words of yet another foreign newcomer to Taipei, Forest Kimler. The words have more weight because they come from a native of congested California traffic.
"To me, Taipei's traffic scenes—crowded parking areas and streets—represent luxury more than congestion. We see here the fruits of the free enterprise system. Free people on the move, getting to and from work-and in the vehicles they have freely purchased with their own earnings. What would Taipei be without its exciting traffic? It quickens the pulse of both residents and amazed visitors alike. And it represents affluence and the dynamic nature of existence which Taipei is really all about."
There certainly is no question about the "quickened pulses" among drivers, passengers, and pedestrians in Taipei. How long this will remain the rule rather the exception remains to be seen. Obviously the problems—and terrors—of urban traffic are widespread and a natural component of urbanization. It remains up to Taipei's government and citizens to decide how best to solve the local variations on this universal problem.