The school taxi rideshare program initiated by the Transportation Bureau of Kaohsiung City Government has received high praise from students since its launch. The Transportation Bureau will extend the service to National Kaohsiung Normal University and National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences on September 11, 2017, when universities and colleges start. Universities and colleges in the Nanzih District will also be able to enjoy the service in the future. It will offer students of suburban universities and colleges a convenient, comfortable, and affordable transportation method while also creating tranquil and safe campuses.
Since the launch of the school rideshare program in 2016, many universities and colleges have shown interest in joining the program, said Chen Ching-Fu, Director-General of the Transportation Bureau. To combine the resources, the school rideshare program will adopt regionally comprehensive planning. For instance, the services for National Kaohsiung Normal University and National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences are combined under an integrated plan. The route will start at National Kaohsiung Normal University, go via National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences, and stop at destinations as students desire. It also provides inter-school or inter-campus shuttle for students of these two schools when they need to take courses at different locations. Rideshare service is convenient, comfortable, and safe.
Chen further explained that the regional school rideshare program has many features. The first feature is that the service connects many proximal spots and various routes that can satisfy various travel needs. The second feature is that the economic scale grows with the number of spots connected. It offers students with have more options and makes the program more appealing, and drivers are more willing to provide the service. The third feature is that the service links different schools together and provides students with a direct and convenient inter-campus travel service. Students taking courses across different schools may enjoy a convenient way to commute and will be more inclined to use this service.
The outcome of the taxi rideshare program has attracted schools to join the program, the Transportation Bureau indicated. They hope to diversify the campus transportation services and bring innovative spirit to schools by introducing rideshare service to the campus. Since the program was launched, it has served more than 14,000 passengers. The highest monthly growth rate was 80%. Bringing taxi rideshare to the campuses also reduces students’ use of cars or motorcycles, decreasing the rate of accidents in areas participating in the program. Students may then be given a “zero-accident, zero-distance, and zero-noise” campus environment. Since the school rideshare program was launched, the number of automobile or motorcycle accidents (A1 and A2) in the college student age group recorded a year-on-year decrease of 41% in the second half of 2016, from 13,846 cases to 8,191 cases.
In the school rideshare program launched on September 11, 2017, the Transportation Bureau combines regional resources. Taking the regional lifestyle into consideration, the planned routes connect nearby hotspots. It not only meets students’ commuting demands, but also goes straight to major hospitals, transit stations, and nearby communities. With routes serving different types of locations, the program offers diverse networks of service. It creates regional centers that cater for people’s daily necessities and brings convenience to rural life. The newly launched Yanchao regional rideshare program was greatly supported by National Kaohsiung Normal University and National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences. Leaflets were made to promote the program in the campuses. It aroused heated discussion even before it was launched.
The Yanchao school rideshare program (covering National Kaohsiung Normal University and National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences) and services for Fooyin University are operated by Taiwan Taxi. The school rideshare program for I-Shou University, Cheng Shiu University, and Shu-Te University is operated by Jhonghua Satellite Taxi. For inquiries, please call Taiwan Taxi’ service hotlines at 55688 (mobile) or 405-88888 (landline) and Jhonghua Satellite Taxi’s service hotline at 07-7258777 or complaint hotline at 07-7131000.
If overcharged or mistreated by the driver, passengers can take note of the license plate number, time and place of the incident, etc., and file a complaint to the Transportation Bureau of Kaohsiung City Government (Complaint Hotline: 07-2226816). In the event that reports are verified by the Transportation Bureau upon investigation, government authorities will impose penalties on the offender in accordance with the “Highway Act”.
Section in Charge: Transportation Supervision Section, Transportation Bureau
Contact Person: Section Chief Su, Jyun-Cin
Telephone: 0963-111-811