Скачать или смотреть Transport ministry rolls out ride-a-bus, rent-a-car program for Mid-Autumn Festival

The transport ministry is trying something new to relieve holiday congestion for the coming Mid-Autumn Festival. Besides the usual freeway traffic controls, it''s rolling out a ride-a-bus, rent-a-car program for Taipei denizens. It works like this: Instead of driving your own car, you catch a coach bus to the East Coast and rent a vehicle that''s parked near your bus stop. Vacationers who participate in the program can save up to NT$200 on their bus ride home.

He climbs up a coach bus used along the Taipei-to-Yilan route. Ahead of Mid-Autumn Festival, the transport minister has announced the standard traffic controls like ramp metering, high-occupancy vehicle restrictions, and toll-free periods. He''s also trying something a little different.

Lin Chia-lung
Transport minister
At your destination bus stop, you''ll have your own set of wheels to connect to seamlessly.

The transport ministry has partnered with 12 rental companies in Yilan and 17 in Hualien. Bus passengers on the Taipei-Hualien or Taipei-Yilan routes can rent a car or a scooter at their destination. Then on their bus ride home, they can show proof of a rental payment to get a discount off their coach ticket. It''s NT$100 off for a scooter rental and NT$200 off for a car.

Member of the public
If we reduce the number of passenger cars on the road, we should be able to smooth out the traffic.

Member of the public
It''s a bit of a ways to drive on your own. Something like this would make it all quite convenient.

Ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, some people are already dreading the traffic. Another issue top of mind is the government''s travel subsidy program and whether it will end early at the end of this month.

Lin Chia-lung
Transport minister
The Legislative Yuan is about to convene, and it will review the budget for the third round of bailouts. If the timing falls into place, we will extend the program from the end of September to the end of October.

The Tourism Bureau''s domestic travel subsidy rolled out in July with a budget of NT$3.9 billion. The program proved more popular than expected due to the summer holidays and pandemic restrictions on international travel. By the end of August, only NT$300 million of the budget was left. The Executive Yuan announced it intended to fund the program only until Sept. 30, terminating it one month earlier than scheduled.