Taiwan legislature votes to change language for 'priority' seating
台灣立法院投票修改「優先」席次條款
| Legislative committee extends use of priority seats to disabled on public transportation
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A legislative committee on Monday approved a draft amendment to the People with Disabilities Rights Protection Act that would change the Mandarin wording of “courtesy seat” to “priority seat” on public transportation. The change would expand the availability of seats to anyone with a physical or mental need. Typically, the seats, which are blue on MRT carriages, though may be differently colored on buses, have been reserved for the elderly, pregnant women, women with young children, and those with injuries, per CNA. In recent years, public debate has erupted over the use of these seats. Often, young people have questioned the need to surrender such seats to the elderly or those who appear otherwise healthy. The seating, however, stems from legislation regarding the rights of the disabled, which stipulates that all public transport should be equipped with barrier-free facilities, reserving 15% of seating for the disabled, elderly, children, and infirm. DPP Legislators Huang Hsiu-fang (黃秀芳), Wang Cheng-hsu (王正旭), and Lin Yueh-chin (林月琴) applauded the change though said amending the law is not enough. They requested a change in signage and a publicity campaign to encourage the public to make these seats available to those in need. DPP Legislator Liu Chien-kuo (劉建國) added that current icons for such seating are not uniform on the Taiwan High Speed Rail, Taiwan Railways, MRT, and buses. Liu called for unifying such icons to avoid public confusion. The legislative committee passed an additional resolution, requesting the Ministry of Transportation and Communications to consult with the Ministry of Health and Welfare to establish unified icons for priority seating. Furthermore, transportation staff have been instructed to remind the public to be courteous and empathetic to those with special needs. |
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| Sean Scanlan, Taiwan News, Staff Writer | |
| 2025-06-24 |
