Department of Transportation

Taipei city has first launched the minibus special transportation service in 1990, and each of the vehicles is installed with a wheelchair elevator. The special service is for people with physical and mental disabilities. After many-year effort of Taipei City Government and many people’s kind donations, currently we have 191 minibuses (including 110 rental and 81 donated vehicles). These minibuses approximately can provide 40,000 times of the service to 80,000 people (including companions). The special service has been greatly recognized and earned laudatory comments from physically and mentally disabled people.
According to the Taipei Public Transportation Office, the number of minibuses providing special transportation service has now reached 191, but the population of physically and mentally disabled people in Taipei City is about 117,000 people, and about 16,000 of them has registered to access to this service (this number is increasing). Thus, this service is probably not accessible for some people during peak time. The special service has been made available for residents of other cities and counties in accordance with the regulations stipulated in Article 58-1 of the Physically and Mentally Disabled Citizens Protection Act on January 1, 2012 so the demand for the service is getting higher. By March 15, 316 residents from outside the Taipei City had taken the minibuses. To be able to serve more people in need of the special service, it relies on the continuous efforts of the government and non-governmental organizations. Therefore, we here appeal to people and organizations to take the minibuses for special transportation as a top priority while donating vehicles to the government.
The Taipei Public Transportation Office further commented that donations from non-governmental organizations have made a great contribution to the yearly increasing number of the minibuses in past few years. Taking last year (2011) as an example, the Taipei Government accepted donation of 19 minibuses from non-governmental organizations including 6 from Rotary International, another 6 from Chinatrust Charity Foundation, and 7 kindly from other people and organizations. The office would like to once again thank all those people’s kindness, and will supervise the contracted bus companies to provide safer, more comfortable and better quality of service to people with physical and mental disabilities. We hope the transportation in our city will be barrier-free for everyone.

2012-03-21