Taipei Travel

The Department of Transportation (DOT) announced that the City is contemplating plans on re-introducing the “free for the first 30 minutes of use” measure for the YouBike public bicycle rental system. Riders will have to transfer to a public transportation means within one hour of the ride to enjoy the offer.According to DOT, the “no charge for the first half hour of YouBike use” measure was canceled in April 2015 in light of growing usage of the system and growing popularity among the public. The adjustment has led to changes in people’s purpose of YouBike utilization – from recreation to commuting.



This behavior change indicates that the goal of YouBike as a connection to the City’s public transportation system has been acheived.To further encourage the use of green transportation and promote a sustainable environment, the city government is planning to bring back the preferential offer for commuters who transfer to the MRT or public buses within one hour of their YouBike ride. As the change will involve system modifications across the YouBike, buses, MRT, and transport ticketing corporations, as well as administrative assistance from New Taipei, the exact date for measure implementation will be announced in the future, DOT noted.