Huang Kuo-chang Blames Ministry for Mid-Autumn Holiday Transit Chaos

During the consecutive holidays connecting this year's Mid-Autumn Festival and Teachers' Day, massive crowds of people returning home and traveling flooded various parts of Taiwan. Major transportation hubs and the national freeway system faced severe challenges, with overall passenger volume hitting a recent high. In response to the significant traffic congestion and public transport overcrowding during the long weekend, Taiwan People's Party Chairman Huang Kuo-chang publicly stated today (the 30th) that the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC), as the nation's transport authority, should not merely respond passively to traffic jams and crowds after the fact. Instead, it must immediately conduct a comprehensive review of the structural problems currently exposed in the public transportation system. He specifically named three core systems: unreserved ticket sales, off-peak discounts, and passenger volume forecasting, demanding that the MOTC propose substantive reform plans to thoroughly improve the traffic conditions that invariably fall into chaos during every extended holiday.

Huang pointed out that during every national holiday in recent years, Taiwan's railway transportation systems, such as the High Speed Rail and Taiwan Railways, have often been flooded with unpredictable and massive numbers of passengers. In particular, unreserved-seating cars routinely exhibit chaotic scenes reminiscent of sardines packed in a tin, which not only severely impacts the quality of the ride but also harbors safety hazards that cannot be ignored. The current unreserved ticketing mechanism lacks total volume control and the flexibility for dynamic adjustment, leading to severe out-of-control crowds both inside and outside platforms and carriages. Therefore, the Taiwan People's Party strongly demands that the MOTC face up to setting a reasonable upper limit on the volume of unreserved tickets sold, and establish a more scientific control mechanism to ensure a balance between ticket-purchasing passengers and carriage space capacity, thereby preventing risks such as shoving conflicts or delayed rescues in medical emergencies caused by overcrowding.

In addition to the total volume control of unreserved seating, the MOTC's long-standing fare and passenger diversion policies were scrutinized once again during this long weekend. Huang specifically mentioned the necessity of implementing and reviewing the off-peak discount system. During long holidays, people tend to depart during specific time slots, causing passenger volumes to surge during peak hours and making tickets nearly impossible to secure, while off-peak hours fail to achieve effective passenger diversion. The Taiwan People's Party believes that the MOTC should re-examine whether the incentive effects of current off-peak discounts are sufficient and whether they can genuinely guide some travelers to adjust their travel itineraries, thereby achieving the substantive effect of evening out and dispersing peak transportation pressure, rather than letting discount policies become a mere formality that fails to perform the critical function of diversion at crucial moments.

Furthermore, regarding the planning source of the overall transportation system, the Taiwan People's Party also directly pointed out that the accuracy of passenger volume forecasting capabilities needs to be improved. During every long holiday, although transportation authorities and various transport operators make prior estimates of passenger volume, a gap often exists between the forecasted data and the actual crowds on the ground, directly triggering a chain reaction of delayed scheduling, tickets selling out in seconds, and standing areas bursting at the seams. Huang emphasized that the MOTC must introduce more accurate passenger volume forecasting models that combine big data and real-time dynamic analysis. When forecasts are inaccurate or crowds exceed expectations, the ministry must possess faster and more robust contingency dispatch capabilities, rather than letting problems repeat themselves and leaving grassroots travelers to bear the bitter fruit of improper transportation planning.

From a broader social and political perspective, severe traffic gridlock during long holidays has long become a shared pain point for the people of Taiwan. This is not only a matter of convenience for citizens traveling out, but also directly tests the governance capacity and crisis response standards of government departments. The Taiwan People's Party's specific demands for three major institutional reforms targeting the MOTC undoubtedly precisely grasp the pain point with the deepest public grievances, attempting to win the recognition of more commuters and returning travelers in the legislature and public opinion. For the MOTC, faced with upcoming long holidays and steadily rising travel demand, if it cannot carry out fundamental institutional reforms to optimize unreserved seating, off-peak discounts, and passenger volume forecasting, it will likely struggle to quell public anger in the future or provide citizens with safe, comfortable, and efficient modern public transportation services.

(Source of Facts: Central News Agency)