I agree with this.
I’d add that I find it to be utterly insane how much priority petro vehicle drivers have in Taiwan. So much space given to their huge cars, so few consequences for their breathtakingly bad behavior (with Taiwan’s awful fatality rate, my use of breathtaking is not just figurative).
Guy
Yes (they don´t know), and no (speed). A well designed roundabout always forces vehicles to reduce their speed. This is why they are much safer than regular intersections, because in case of an accident, its consequences are almost always less serious due to the reduced speed.
No pedestrians should never try to cross through a roundabout. The reduced speed of vehicles incoming and outgoing to and from roundabouts makes pedestrian crossing safer. Roundabouts can have traffic lights (on pedestrian demand in medium traffic areas and regular traffic lights on denser traffic areas).
Yes, safer infraestructure usually costs more to build than just covering everything with asphalt. In the long term, it doen´t.
No need. Plenty of space. I don´t remember European cities bulldozing buildings to make space for roundabouts.
I get that many of you are North Americans and you do not really understand or appreciate roundabouts. But they are a superior design for the many of the intersections. Of course, not every intersection needs a roundabout, not even France does that.
I’m just talking about the 2 roundabouts at the new Taipei industrial park and it’s hard to cross without risking life and limb because vehicles do not yield even if they drive a bit slower.
Vehicle speed is already slower overall which is why accidents are seldom fatal compared to the us (where people drive a lot faster), it’s just that people don’t yield here.
I’ve seen people drive 55mph in a suburb in the states, and that’s in roads that has speed limit of 35mph. North American road design isn’t that good and sadly too many countries copy them.
This.
When I was growing up, there was constantly road work going on somewhere in the city, on a rolling basis. There was constantly something that needed upgrading, whether it be new LED traffic signals, or new noisemakers for the visually impaired, or accessibility ramps, or new traffic islands for pedestrians.
That doesn’t seem to happen much in Taiwan. I don’t think they even regularly budget for urban upgrades.
I spent most of my time in Washington DC and Massachusetts where there were plenty of roundabouts and rotaries and traffic circles, and I currently live in Kaohsiung where there are also plenty. They work for some types of intersections/situations, and not for others.
For most regular intersections traffic lights still work better, especially when you need to create a pause in the traffic flow to allow nearby cars to come out from driveways and side streets.
Fun fact: the city with the most roundabouts is in North America.
I always thought Milton Keynes held that record. I was wrong.
I think Milton Keynes and Carmel, IN, have around the same number. Just over 130.
It’s making the news . She was trapped on a traffic island by cars refusing to slow down or yield, and had to be rescued.
Whole thing was streamed live, massive face loss for Taiwan:
Good, we need more such news and on much more wider level before government take their blinds off and start doing some shit to save face. Normal ways aren’t really working much.
I think lasting change will only happen if someone who is dear to those who rule taiwan gets badly hurt or killed in traffic.
I often think about this too. Yeah, a relative to someone in power or some kind of horrible national tragedy with multiple deaths. But it has to be a case that cannot be attributed to individual irresponsibility or bad luck.
Is there any road victims association trying to lobby about this issue?
I don’t know… if not maybe someone should start one.
I googled “車禍受害者協會” and found this
http://www.scidps.org.tw/typsn-fa-5_1-3.html
Maybe stage a protest or two and that should lead to actions.
Fuck bicycles. They’re worse than scooters. Cyclists think they own pedestrian crossings and sidewalks.
I think we agree, bicycles need their own space separated from pedestrians and motor vehicles.
Taiwanese seem to think cyclists=pedestrians.
Saw this post being shared by a few groups online, the original post is from a politician. Basically if you run a red light and stop it is a 900nt fine, but if you run a red light and turn red it is a 600nt fine, so it is a cheaper to continue to run the red light and turn, can save 300nt.
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=813675400416626&set=a.546318353819000
In Europe bikes have their own space, and if you intrude that space as anyone (doesn’t matter if it’s as a car, as a pedestrian, or anything else) it’s your fault if any accident happens and you are fully liable for anything.
Bike lanes don’t work in Taiwan because people will just park scooters in it or put up stalls there. Riverside bike paths are a little better but people still drive scooters in it, or pedestrians walk zig zag in it as if inviting you to hit them.
Yeah Taiwan needs designated bike lanes. You can’t ride a bike on the road because there are too many illegally parked cars and you never know when one will suddenly pull out into traffic and smash into you if you try to pass the parked cars on the left. Not to mention bus drivers swerving across multiple lanes of traffic. You shouldn’t ride on the sidewalk cuz that’s for people who are walking. So where do bikes ride? It’s not safe to be a cyclist anywhere. But ebikes should be outlawed. Just straight up banned. I’m sick and tired of being flown at at 100kph on the sidewalk. I stopped a guy the other day who was driving right at me and told him “you can’t drive your scooter on the sidewalk” (in Chinese) and he said “這是馬的腳踏車！你看不出來嗎？！” and i said “你在踏嗎？我看你在騎” and he screech cried “關你屁事!” And then I fucking saw him again today. I will be there with my camera at the ready to post my only YouTube video ever if I see him again. Entitled brat.
Would be great. Meanwhile, hope we can keep motorcycles from owning the roads and parking lots. Today could not get into the last parking space because a motorcycle decided the dedicated motorcycle spaces 20 meters away were too far. Well, there were about 5 motorcycles parked in an area which made it very difficult to park.
