This is much more common in parts of Asia than the rest of the world.
Ummm, they’re describing the common scooter rider, not big bike, who tend to be more careful and observant. Sure, there is overlap- the majority of the population suffers from “scooter brain” from an early age and it affects how traffic works in TW and is also one reason why the automobile drivers are so scary.
Another forklift another death. In Tainan a forklift illegally enters the road and a 21yr. old girl working at a drink shop delivering drinks on her scooter hits the forks around neck/head level and dies. It is illegal for forklifts to be driven on the road.
Under proposed changes last year, that as far as I know have yet to take effect, forklifts would be able to apply for a temporary road permit, but would have to be equipped with dashcams and some other safety equipment and must have the forks removed and only be allowed to travel at most 3km., not allowed to make left turns, and must stay in the outermost lane.
Driving a forklift directly into a fast scooter riders face, what could happen?.. is unfortunately a thought the driver didnt have.
Nah, there’s two kinds of big bike riders. There’s the group that gets a heavy bike to show off, then there’s the group that loves riding.
It’s the latter that actually use indicators and check theirs shoulders when switching lanes, they do actually drive well.
My experience is that I often see the former.
That one is so sad, so avoidable. I mean, that left turn, even for a car, would be dangerous. To attempt that in a forklift… unbelievably stupid.
Data out for Jan. to April.
Taichung has been dethroned these past few months in terms of casualties. Chiayi is blowing up though and has 43.77% higher amount of casualties (per 100,000 people) compared to 2nd place Tainan. Taichung dropped all the way to 3rd worst.
[Image & Data Source: MOTC Traffic Safety platform]
Funeral for the 18yr. old girl killed a couple of weeks ago by a crane operator has recently taken place.
ChatGPT translation of article:
Nursing Student Crushed to Death by Crane Truck — Farewell Ceremony Held Today; Mother Lashes Out: “Driver Has Shown No Concern”
An 18-year-old female nursing student surnamed Tsai was fatally run over by a crane truck driver who ran a red light last month. Today (July 4), her family held a farewell ceremony. Her grieving mother said her daughter had so many dreams and never imagined her life would end so soon. She criticized the driver for never reaching out to the family, adding that the NT$150,000 bail granted to him was unacceptable. Yang, another rider who was also hit in the incident, angrily commented that the 77-year-old driver should never have been on the road, calling him a “walking time bomb.”
Crane Truck Driver Causes 1 Death, 3 Injuries by Running Red Light — Released on NT$150,000 Bail; Family “Cannot Accept”
With tears in her eyes, Tsai’s mother mourned her daughter, who was crushed by the crane truck last month. At just 18 years old, her life was cut short. Beyond grief, the family is overwhelmed with anger. The severe crash occurred near Taipei’s Zhongxiao Xinsheng MRT Station, where the crane truck driver ran a red light and plowed into several motorcyclists, resulting in one death and three injuries. The deceased was a nursing student who had just finished her hospital internship before her life was tragically taken.
The driver was later released on NT$150,000 (approximately USD 4,600) bail — a decision the family finds completely unacceptable. They also criticized the driver for not attending the funeral and not even making a single phone call since the incident. The loss of an innocent young life has left the mother not only heartbroken but deeply resentful.
Eyewitness Claims Crane Truck Crushed Student Again — Fellow Victim Accuses Driver of “Intentional Murder”
Yang, a fellow motorcyclist who was also hit, said the female student was first run over by the front wheel and was clearly seen waving for help afterward. However, the driver continued to roll over and drag her forward, which Yang described as a deliberate act of murder. He harshly criticized the fact that the 77-year-old driver was still allowed on the road, calling him a “human time bomb.” Yang also expressed outrage at the low bail amount: “Touching a sea turtle costs NT$300,000, but a human life is only worth NT$150,000?” He said he couldn’t accept it, especially on behalf of the young woman whose life was lost.
CNA News report about the data from Jan. to April.
ChatGPT Translation:
Ministry of Transportation Announces Latest Traffic Accident Statistics from January to April: 404 Elderly Fatalities Within 30 Days, Up by 5 from Last Year
The Ministry of Transportation has released its latest traffic accident statistics for January through April. A total of 404 elderly individuals died within 30 days of a traffic accident, an increase of 5 compared to the same period last year. Minister of Transportation, Chen Shih-Kai, stated that preventing accidents involving the elderly has been designated a key priority, and new policies will be introduced to improve the situation.
At a road safety press conference today, the Ministry announced that there were 131,872 road traffic accidents from January to April this year, an increase of 3,833 cases (3%) compared to the same period last year. Among them, the number of people who died within 30 days of an accident was 920 — the lowest for the same period since 2019 — down by 69 deaths, or 7%, from last year.
Notably, in the first four months, aside from the elderly — whose 30-day death toll rose by 5 to 404, an increase of 1.3% — other categories such as motorcycle riders, drunk driving, pedestrians, and children/adolescents all saw decreases in fatalities compared to the same period last year.
Minister Chen stated that 122 pedestrian deaths were recorded from January to April this year, the second-lowest number on record for that period, surpassed only by the 121 deaths in 2011. Addressing elderly accident prevention, he said it has been made one of the Ministry’s key tasks, and new policies will be gradually introduced to address the issue.
As for the number of A1 fatalities (deaths within 24 hours) from January to May, 674 people died — a decrease of 20 from the same period last year, a reduction of 2.9%. Among them, pedestrian deaths totaled 90, one fewer than last year, a reduction of 1.1%.
Regional Breakdown:
Looking at the overall “30-day death toll” by county and city for the first four months, Director of the Road Administration and Traffic Safety Division, Huang Yun-Guei, stated that Hsinchu County, Miaoli County, Chiayi City, Tainan City, Yilan County, and Penghu County all recorded increases compared to both 2023 and 2024 figures for the same period. Tainan City had the highest increase, with 29 more deaths in one year and 11 more in another.
Regarding pedestrian “30-day death tolls” in various counties and cities during the same period, Huang pointed out that Taichung City, Yunlin County, Chiayi County, Chiayi City, and Kaohsiung City all saw increases compared to the past two years. Compared to the same period last year, three counties and cities saw the largest increases (4 deaths each): New Taipei City, Yunlin County, and Kaohsiung City.
Hopefully these also involve measures to prevent accidents caused by the elderly, i.e. take away their license if they can’t even walk unaided, let alone drive.
Have they mentioned any changes to the extremely dark tints on buses? I don’t know if it’s just a Taichung thing or not, but I keep seeing these buses with a really strong dark tint. I don’t even know if there’s a bus driver inside or not!
Like this one, one of Taichung’s new small, white buses:
Can I get on? Can’t see shit through the window!
Putting my camera on the window itself sometimes works… well, there’s a bus driver inside, but he looks busy. And angry!
And this one, where a tiny two-wheel bus is stopped in front of one of those small black buses I sometimes see in Taichung.
There are two children waiting for a different bus, one of the old, traditional green buses, but the bus stop is so congested with three different buses of different sizes that the children have to go out into the busy road:
Is there even a bus driver in the little black bus? Oh, yes, my camera found him!
And then sometimes a Taichung bus is just completely abandoned at the bus stop, but you can’t tell because of the strong window tint. Is this bus in service?
Apparently not…
And what about this, one of Taichung’s new flat-bed buses?
Nope, the driver’s gone… somewhere?
That being said, it’s great to see some of the friendly, helpful bus drivers here in Taichung. Here, you can see the bus driver (I think he’s the one in the brown shirt) leaving his bus unattended so he can help a passenger bring boxes out to the little brown bus. Amazing, friendly Taichung bus service!
Update on the 23yr. old who drove an ambulance and blew through a red light without slowing down first and hit and killed a man in his 60s on a scooter. This guy has already been caught driving a motorcycle without a license 8 times! Yes you read that right, 8 times. He has never had a license.
Big accident on the coastal expressway in Hsinchu. Truck driver is dead and the elderly driver in the car is somehow okay with just minor injuries.
Police car responding to reports of illegal parking makes a stupidly dangerous U-turn and pulls out in front of a scooter going straight on the outer lane.
Car starting to peek out into the road and a person on a scooter ends up crashing on the wet road. Car driver somehow didn’t even notice at all..then proceeds to pull into the road and run over the scooter rider who just fell in front of them…
Lady in Taichung’s XinShe district decides to try her luck crossing Prov. Highway 3 (going towards DongShi district) across the road divider. Traffic is backed up due to the red light further up ahead but as traffic starts moving on the green light she squeezes through the traffic…and runs straight into the motorcycle/slow lane without even looking and runs right in front of a scooter who was going pretty slow. She’s pretty damn lucky, the speed limit there is 70.
Driver pulls out into the road…right into an officer on a scooter who was able to dodge. The cop immediately turns on the sirens and pulls them over. Driver must be blind…well looking at the dark tints…
Using your phone while riding up to a red light? Maybe check to see if there’s any police also coming up to the red light.
This short clip is very Taiwan (traffic).
this one frustrates greatly because even a cursory look at his location would tell any creature with a functioning brain that even if he cuts right as hard as he can he isn’t getting off that bridge like that. Absolute WTF.
Update to this case from last year. The driver was found to have been speeding, well over double the speed limit. The driver was driving 113kmh. The speed limit on that road is 50kmh. The driver will be charged with negligent homicide. Negligent homicide can get you up to a 5 year sentence or a NT$500,000 fine. He stayed at the scene and admitted fault to police so he will be given a lighter sentence.
ChatGPT Translation of article:
Taichung Denture Company Director Indicted After Speeding BMW at 113 km/h Kills 19-Year-Old Part-Time Worker
On the morning of December 24 last year, the director of a denture company in Taichung, surnamed Shen, was driving a BMW luxury car on Dongshan Road in Dakeng, Taichung City—where the speed limit is 50 km/h—at a speed of 113 km/h. He struck and killed a 19-year-old woman surnamed Yang, who was working a part-time job. The impact threw Yang off the road and down a slope approximately 6 meters deep. She suffered a fractured cervical spine, pneumothorax, hemothorax, and other serious injuries, leading to her death.
Despite this, the Taichung District Prosecutors Office determined that Shen had not been swerving or otherwise driving in a way that posed broad public danger. Although he was severely speeding, prosecutors decided he could not be charged with “causing death by endangering the public.” Instead, he has been indicted for negligent homicide.
The Taichung District Prosecutors Office emphasized in the indictment that Shen was driving at an extremely high speed and recommended the court impose a harsher sentence. However, since Shen remained at the scene after the accident and informed the arriving police that he was the driver responsible, which qualifies as voluntary surrender under the law, the prosecution asked the court to consider a reduced sentence accordingly.
On the day of the accident, the 19-year-old Ms. Yang was riding her scooter to work. Less than 800 meters from the amusement park where she worked, she was struck by the speeding BMW on Dongshan Road in Beitun District. She was thrown down a 6-meter slope and showed no signs of life when rescued. She was rushed to the hospital but could not be revived.
According to the police investigation, Shen was grossly speeding. While turning a curve, he was going too fast and braked improperly, causing the tires to skid and lose control. The vehicle veered across the center line into the opposite lane and struck Yang head-on, killing her. The entire incident lasted only a few seconds, and the scene was described as horrifying.
A forensic examination revealed multiple facial and limb fractures, open wounds, discharge from both ears, a broken cervical spine, and both pneumothorax and hemothorax.
During the investigation, Shen admitted that his BMW lost control and slid, hitting and killing Yang. A report from the Taichung City Traffic Accident Investigation Committee confirmed that Shen was speeding and crossed into the opposite lane, which was deemed the main cause of the accident. Ms. Yang bore no responsibility for the crash.
Nevertheless, prosecutors found that while Shen’s speeding and improper driving were indeed serious and warranted a heavier sentence, his actions did not constitute public endangerment to the extent required by law for the more severe charge. He was therefore charged only with negligent homicide. Under Article 276 of the Criminal Code, negligent homicide is punishable by up to five years in prison, detention, or a fine of up to NT$500,000.
At this intersection, I see absolutely no difference in the crime rate whether a police officer is stationed here or not. In fact, the way that the police see and ignore all these crimes must surely be worse, as it endorses the drivers’ terrible behavior.
This traffic police officer ignored about twenty traffic violations while I was here (I paused my journey here to call 110 for several parking violations I’d witnessed in the previous two minutes of my journey). At one point he aimlessly wandered into the bicycle lane, obstructing a cyclist that he would have seen had he fucking looked around first.
Finally, the traffic light changes to red, and as a reward to himself, he pulls out his smartphone to have a bit of a play.
And then two motorcyclists, according the police officer the exact level of respect he deserves, run the red light right in front of him.
In case anyone was in any doubt, this is Taichung.
No worries in the rest the country the "traffic police"it’s not different
Sometimes lunlan posts videos of someone committing a traffic violation in front of police in Taiwan, and the police ACTUALLY DO SOMETHING!
And it’s never in Taichung. 
