Bit of bad news for those who rely on the 983 bus and find the Danhai LRT too slow.
983 services, it looks like, will be severely reduced, even more on weekends.
I remember a posting suggesting that the line would be closed, but maybe they changed their minds?
Happy New Year!
Iāve never taken a bus here, not once. Are they as reliable as the trains? Trains here are on point.
I wanted to be first to post about āLife on the Buses 2019ā. Guess Iāll have to wait and try again in 2020. A goal and something to look forward to.
Yes, especially if you download a bus app. I can time my arrival at the bus stop and keep my wait time to no more than 5 minutes with the help of the app.
The apps are great, especially since still quite a lot of places in Taichung donāt have ETA boards.
Great way to score some points with the local elderly folks when they need help finding out how much longer until their bus arrives.
Wheelchair access? How do you know in advance? Is there a sign at bus stop?
Thatās pretty awesome. Back in Aus youād be lucky the bus or train even showed up, let alone on time.
Much more often and reliable than Canada for sure. If you live on the fringes of societ-I mean just outside of the MRT but a bit too far to walk, they may be your only option. I do use them in the middle of Taipei as well if you want to take a shortcut without going allā¦theā¦wayā¦around on the MRT, they can save time, for example, going between the Xinyi/Xiangshan area to Songshan or the 947 bus from Danshui to Banciao.
In Twinbei(hoping it catches on), 900 series buses, excluding 981-985 are local buses that use the highway to skip over large sections, like 909 to Xindian, 939 from Xinyi to Sansia, and 947, banciao to Danshui. They can be real time savers if you use them right. 986 is a cheap way to get to the Taoyuan Airport via highway as well.
Coloured buses are special MRT shuttles. Theyāre usually short, but they ALWAYS go to an MRT station in one way or another. Easy to start with these if learning the buses cause if you get lost, at least you can get off at an MRT station and find your way.
House prices near the MRT can be rather high and I refuse to live in Gongyus, so I choose to go a bit further to save some money.
@Incubus mentioned the apps. There are also the websites as well.
New Taipei eBus
Taipei eBus
Keelung eBus (Independent System)
Yilan eBus (Independent System)
Taoyuan eBus (Independent System)
Anyone else want to add the websites, feel free to post them too.
Hope this helps!
Buses that reek of Tiger Balm and Old Person Smell instead of perfume and freshly washed hair.
Has anyone besides me banged their leg on this hidden trap? Letās just put something below knee level that people can bang their legs on when theyāre looking for a handhold.
Saw someone get bumped by a scooter when getting off the bus near Yizhong St. in Taichung.
Guy jumped off the bus without looking and girl riding too fast through the bus stop zone. Girl slammed her brakes and just taps the guy a bit and then her scooter tips over. The guy asks her if sheās okay and she just gets her scooter back up and drives offā¦
The only thing surprising about it was how little I see things like this happen.
Waiting 10 minutes with four other people at a covered bus stop in the rain.
I have my easy card ready to hop on the bus.
Being the nice guy that I am I let everyone go ahead of me. Unfortunately no one is prepared with their card and each one spends time looking through their bag for their card while the rest of the people are trying to navigate the rain.
Itās almost like they have no idea they need their card to get on the bus until they get on the bus.
What I need this card thatās lost in my bag to use to get on this bus?
My life is sooooo hard.
I rarely take buses in Taipei, and Iām always so confused about how people pay. Sometimes they swipe the card when they get on. Sometimes when they get off. Sometimes when they get on AND when they get off. It feels all so random. Iām usually happy when thereās someone at the bus stop, so I can let them go first and I can apply a monkey-see-monkey-do survival strategy.
I like ) bus in Taipei because there are a lot that go from where I am and to where Iām going. Parking a scooter or car can be a pain. Buses can be faster avoiding traffic. Sometimes go weeks without driving. Sometimes I go to one spot and then walk for a while and take a bus back just for exploring or exercise.
Also, staring out the window watching life pass by.
Itās been explained elsewhere on here so I wonāt bother, simple solution if youāre unsure is to swipe your card when you get on and when you get off that way you canāt go wrong, you wonāt be charged unnecessarily either.
Itās going to be changing this year to swipe-on swipe-off
A word of warning: the amahs of the bus are beginning to engage in biowarfare. One of them farted on me today.
Theyāre preparing for the Chinese invasion.
I remember when buses were so packed that sometimes you can stand and not have to hold on to anything
Minister friend of mine called it close fellowship
It does remind you that you are just another human being
What I like is when a pretty girl is in front of me and we are so packed together itās like we are slow dancing ā¦cheek to cheek ā¦yeah I know ā¦pervy
Oh and donāt think of anything funny
This last time in Taipei a few years back the bus was about 3/4 full and I was standing
Thought of a funny joke I heard and I kind of chuckled to myself just a tiny bit and I soon realized that I had a 8 foot clear zone around me as people thought I might be crazy
No I didnāt let one go
