OPEN AIR DOUBLE DECKER BUS TESTS RIDE IN KAOHSIUNG|高雄經營城市觀光 試乘開頂雙層巴士

Kaohsiung City Light Rail was recently launched. Now the city has a new transport attraction for all visitors, the open air double decker sightseeing bus. On August 7, the buses took to the streets for a test ride to the delight of excited passengers. The bus routes are similar to that of the Light Rail and offer a new perspective on the city. However, because of the overlapping routes and the high cost to ride the bus, some are not optimistic about this joint venture between the city government and local bus operator. For the first time, Kaohsiung City has a double-decker open air bus running. Passengers can see the scenery from the open air, and they feel the city bus is very comfortable. ==PASSENGER== I feel excited, finally I can experience a double-decker bus in Kaohsiung City, I feel happy. ==PASSENGER== It's comfortable and steady, the same as the ones abroad. Being open air is an attraction, but it also has problems such as the heat and rain. The bus company says there are not many rainy days in Kaohsiung, if it rains, they will provide specially-made raincoats. ==LI TSUNG-HSI, General Manager, Kaohsiung Bus Group== Kaohsiung's characteristic is that it has the least rainy days of all Taiwan's cities, maybe about only 90 days per year. Cities in the center and north have at least 200 rainy days per year. ==KAOHSIUNG RESIDENT== In summer, maybe it would be better to have air conditioning. If you sit on the upper deck, it might be too hot during the summer. Some people are skeptical about wearing raincoats or getting direct heat when sitting on the upper deck. One ticket costs NT$300 for a 50-minute tour. The double-decker bus is scheduled to provide free rides on August 10th. Will it be successful? The Transportation Bureau of Kaohsiung City Government says the city provides various means of transportation for visitors, aiming at boosting tourism in Kaohsiung. TRANSLATED BY：ANTHONY LIN 車子開動，傍晚從高雄港吹來的涼風迎面拂來，城市風景也跟著映入眼簾，高雄市政府和高雄客運，打造全國第一輛開頂雙層巴士，下午首度亮相上路，民眾興奮嚐鮮，覺得搭乘起來很舒適。 ==試乘民眾== 就是感覺很興奮 終於在高雄 也可以體驗到這個雙層巴士 很開心 ==試乘民眾== 舒適度很平穩 和國外的不相上下 沒有車頂是觀光賣點，卻也有日曬雨淋的問題，客運業者強調，高雄降雨天數不多，就算真的下雨，也有特製雨衣。 ==高雄客運總經理 李宗熹== 在台灣的城市特性裡面 以高雄它的下雨時間 是全國最短 大概一年只有90天 那以中北部以上 至少每年都有200天的下雨 ==高雄市民== 夏天的話 可能就要有冷氣 如果坐在上面的話 就會可能 因為夏天比較熱 只不過穿雨衣搭車，或者頂著大太陽看風景，有的民眾還是有疑慮，而且票價300元，按路線繞行一趟大約50分鐘，8月10日開放免費試乘後天氣還熱，會不會被路線類似的輕軌排擠，有待觀察。不過市府交通局認為，多種觀光運輸工具互相搭配，給遊客更多選擇，就有機會擴大高雄的觀光市場。 記者 王介村 許政俊 高雄報導