Pingtung Public Bikes: A Change of Generations

Pingtung’s public bicycle system is changing generations this year. Starting from February 1st, YouBike 2.0 was officially launched, and the original PBike was gradually withdrawn. This is a very impressive upgrade.

Especially the walking environment in Pingtung City is really bad. Really need public bicycles instead. I remember once I originally planned to walk from Pingtung Station to Shengli New Village. After passing through the central market and walking to Pingtung Park, I gave up and rode Pbike instead.

Anyone who has ridden a Pbike knows how hard it can be. It is harder to ride than the previous CBike in Kaohsiung or the TBike in Tainan. But in those days, something was better than nothing.

I recently rode a few times intensively on YouBike in Pingtung City. Super smooth, although I was riding at noon, the sun in Pingtung made me feel like a baked sweet potato.

The first time was riding from Minsheng Campus of Pingtung University of Education to Carrefour Xinping Store, and then to Pingtung Station.

That day, I traveled from Kaohsiung to Pingtung with my family to attend the rest of the elders. After the end, the friends of the elders invited them to the Wuhuama Dumpling Restaurant of Carrefour Xinping Store for a simple meal, and then sent the foreign friends back to the station. Because he can’t finish the car in one trip, we will ride YouBike, don’t bother the elders to make another trip. Back to the station is also their own bike.

The challenge of cycling in Pingtung is the road conditions. The slow lane is narrow and often blocked by cars. The first time I rode, I encountered two Porsches stopping on the side of the road and blocking the slow lane. I just need to leave more buffer space to bypass. Otherwise, it will be miserable if it is accidentally bumped or shot down by the owner opening the door. But then you have to go in the fast lane.

The second time was from Pingtung Station to and from Carrefour Xinping Store. The story is that the last time I ate at Carrefour, I forgot to take back my eco-friendly chopsticks. I called the store, and the store said it had kept it for me. I found a day to run to pick it up at noon.

When you get out of Pingtung Station, you can ride a YouBike there. Get back the chopsticks and eat a dumpling by the way, then ride back to the station. It takes exactly one hour from leaving Pingtung Station to returning to Pingtung Station. It’s a bit like using Pingtung Station as an MRT station. Because it was noon on weekdays, the traffic was smoother.

Rail transport is just the backbone. Local public transportation still needs to be convenient enough so that outsiders will not have to be trapped at the station after they arrive. YouBike is a key link, but not all. Buses and passenger transportation, as well as the most basic walking environment, need to be strengthened urgently.

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