Lawmakers Inspect Wheelchair Accessibility Issues at Taipei Main Station

TaiwanPlus News

Two lawmakers have toured Taipei Main Station in wheelchairs to see for themselves the challenges wheelchair users face when trying to get around the transport hub.

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00:00These two lawmakers are joining disability activists for a tour of Taipei Main Station,

00:11the capital's primary transit hub.

00:13To get a true sense of what it's like for wheelchair users, they're in wheelchairs too.

00:18It's not long before they hit barrier number one,

00:21the escalators down from the lobby to the trains.

00:23Lawmakers Guo Yuqin and Chen Qinghui come from opposite sides of the political aisle,

00:33but today they're in the same boat.

00:35Because until a station attendant picks up their call and helps them turn on the wheelchair ramp,

00:40neither of them is going anywhere.

00:42It can take up to 10 minutes for someone to show up.

00:45Something that takes just a few seconds for people on foot turns into a lengthy hassle.

00:49There are elevators, but wheelchair users say finding them, even on station maps, isn't easy.

01:03And where there are signs, advocates say they are often far too low to the ground to be noticed,

01:08making it easy for wheelchair users to get lost.

01:11Wheelchair users say Taipei Main Station doesn't adequately meet their needs.

01:15Taipei Main Station is where local metro, airport metro, high-speed rail and local rail lines all meet.

01:38Statistically, some 30,000 people with a disability pass through every day.

01:42Taiwan Railway says it's taking suggestions for better accessibility seriously.

02:02Wheelchair users and the lawmakers that have joined them today hope the station will take these promises seriously,

02:08so that navigating one of Taiwan's most complex transport hubs will be at least a little bit easier.

02:14Joseph Wu and John Van Trieste for Taiwan Plus.

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