Day 12: Let's Talk About Taiwan Transportation

Today was an easy-going day with nothing much to report, so let's talk about transportation in Taiwan!

It's about a 1/2 mile walk from our apartment to school.  With the 2 drop-off times and pick-up, I walk 3 miles....AT LEAST.  This doesn't include all the other walking we do when we go somewhere after school, etc.  City life is so different from suburban life.  We walk all the time.  Rain...

or shine...

Luckily, the public transportation in Taipei is awesome.  There are 3 kinds of trains here: the mass rapid transit (MRT) for the main part of Taipei, TRA local trains (for towns all around Taiwan), and the High Speed Rail (HSR) that runs from the Taipei area to the southern town of Kaoshung.

The MRT is what we ride every day for outings.  It's similar to the subway system in NYC (you can get in and out with the use of an Easy Card), but completely different in so many ways.

1. There is no eating or drinking allowed once you swipe past the turnstiles.  It seems inconvenient at times (when little ones are hungry), but it's what keeps the MRT so clean.  It's amazing how clean it is.  And there are no funky smells or sticky spots anywhere!!

2. When going on the escalator to/from the platform, you stand on the right.  If you need to rush by, you use the left hand side.

3. When you are waiting to get onto the MRT, you have to wait in line.  Lines are marked with paint on the ground.  You also allow people to exit the MRT before boarding yourself.  I found it so impressive that people really wait in these queues marked by paint on the ground.  I feel like in the US, people would care less about painted lines.

4. There really isn't much loud talking on the MRT.  For the most part, passengers are looking at their phones, but most don't talk on their phones...and if they do, they do it quietly.  (Although I heard that in Japan it's SUPER EXTRA quiet on the trains, even during rush hour.)

5. There are priority seats near the doors (that are dark blue) for pregnant women, elderly people, handicapped people, and passengers with children.  People are SO nice about letting my parents and my kids have seats (not just the priority seats).  98% of the time, when Eulee walks into a full car, someone gets up to let her have the seat.  It amazes me time and time again.

It seems like there are a lot of rules, but these rules help make the MRT enjoyable!  The kids really love it.  They love that they carry their own Easy Cards clipped to their clothes and that they can swipe in and out by themselves.  Many of the stations also have special stamps that you can stamp into a notebook.  My kids just discovered this halfway through the trip and have started trying to collect the stamps as they go.

With that said, the disadvantage of using the MRT is that there is no door-to-door service.  Our closest station is less than 10 minutes away, but in the humidity or after a long day, it seems like very far away.  Ha!  And sometimes there can be lots of seats available...

and other times, you're in rush-hour traffic and it's jammed packed inside...

We rode the TRA train to Hualien (Day 3) and they are regular trains that allow eating and drinking.  They are still kept very clean.  The thing with the local trains though is that they can get full.  So sometimes, you run into situations where you are tired and hot, but you have to stand or you have to share seats with your cousins (like when we came back from Ying Ge)....

We have also taken the HSR to go down to Yunlin to visit my uncle and to Taichung to visit my cousin.  The HSR is SO fast, smooth, clean, and convenient.  Eating and drinking are allowed as well, but it is still well-maintained and clean.  You really don't feel like you're going 185 mph...it's a really nice, comfy ride!

We've also taken the bus around town as well.  The bus is better at getting you door-to-door, but it also gets caught in traffic.  We've only taken the bus during off hours, so it's been very timely and a good experience.

Most people here ride mopeds around town since they are cheaper and easier to park.  The kids are always amazed at the number of mopeds zoom during rush hour traffic.  It's a sight to see!

Luckily, Eli caught a ride with my cousin BY when we were visiting him in Taichung.  People also use bicycles and electric bicycles.  When you're walking on the sidewalk, there's always a lane (designated and non-designated) for bicycles, so pedestrians have to be mindful of that.  The kids got rides on an electric bicycle with BY and B while we were visiting my uncle in Taishi.  It was especially fun because Taishi is in the country, so you can ride around without any rules.  They loved it!

We love all the different means of transportation in Taiwan and Taipei.  It's such a fun way for my kids to get around town.  We like the convenience of having a car back home (especially for grocery shopping and for when you're feeling just plain lazy or tired),

but it's nice to be able to hop on and off everywhere these days.