In order to solve the shortage of bus drivers, the city government plans to increase the driver's salary subsidy.

(Photo by reporter Xie Wuxiong)

[Reporter Xie Wuxiong/Taoyuan Report] According to the current bus routes and frequency calculations, Taoyuan City’s passenger transport operators need 1,009 drivers, but there is still a shortage of 251, nearly 1/4 of the quota. Taoyuan’s current subsidy for drivers’ salaries is only 6,000 yuan, which is far less than that of Shuangbei. 13,000 yuan. In view of the strong demand for drivers, the city government plans to increase the freight rate to subsidize wages, hoping to narrow the distance between the subsidy and Shuangbei.

City Councilor Peng Junhao was concerned about the lack of drivers on the bus route during the questioning of the council. He said that the "Qingpu Loop Line Bus" had been approved for trial operation in February, but in the end it was postponed to June due to the shortage of drivers. He also suggested that the city government Allow other operators to join, or increase driver subsidies, and solve the driver shortage problem through market mechanisms and salary increases.

Mayor Zhang Shanzheng responded that the current salary increase for bus drivers is 6,000 yuan, of which 4,000 yuan is covered by the city government budget, and the other 2,000 yuan is allocated to the driver for the government subsidy for the freight rate and fare difference. Yuan; Taoyuan still has room to increase, so for the 4,000 yuan part of the city government subsidy, it will be discussed and increased in the second half of the year. As for the freight rate and the fare difference subsidy, it will be determined after the freight rate is adjusted, and it will be adjusted next year.

Huang Xinyun, Chief of the Public Transportation Section of the Transportation Bureau, said that the freight rate is calculated based on operating costs such as fuel, tires, depreciation, salary, preferential subsidies, and various taxes and fees. The current approved freight rate in Taoyuan City is 20 yuan, and the basic fare is 18 yuan, the city government will subsidize the difference of 2 yuan; while the current fare in Shuangbei is 15 yuan, the freight rate is 23 yuan, and the government subsidizes the difference of 8 yuan.

Huang Xinyun said that the difference between the ticket price and the freight price is subsidized by the government for passengers. The New Taipei and Taipei City Governments require the operators to provide the driver's salary after receiving the subsidy. Therefore, the salary subsidy in Shuangbei is as high as 13,000 yuan. Since the subsidy in Shuangbei is 7,000 yuan more than that in Taoyuan, Many passenger drivers in the Guishan area went to Xinbei to drive buses. In addition, during the Wuhan pneumonia (new coronavirus disease, COVID-19) epidemic, due to the large decline in traffic volume, a large number of drivers were also lost.