Transportation Bureau of Kaohsiung City Government has installed solar-powered e-paper smart bus stops to provide real-time information on bus arrivals at bus stops that are unable to apply for electricity. These smart stops feature power-saving, green energy and smartness. This year, the central government has agreed to subsidize a total of 40 bus stops in Tauyuan, Shanlin and Dashu Districts to improve the bus waiting experience.
The Transportation Bureau pointed out that the solar-powered e-paper smart bus stops are different from the ordinary LED smart bus stops. Solar-powered e-paper bus stop uses e-paper display technology, which is very energy-efficient and can be read like paper, making it convenient for the public to check the real-time arrival information of the bus.
It uses solar modules to generate electricity without applying for utility power, which is more in line with the characteristics of energy saving and environmental protection. The Transportation Bureau has also enlarged the fonts of road maps in order to make it easier for the elderly to read the maps, and has also set up seats in the space around the bus stops in order to provide people with a smarter, energy-saving and comfortable environment while waiting for buses.
The Transportation Bureau has received subsidies from the Central Government to build 40 solar-powered e-paper smart bus stops this year, which are expected to be located at the bus stops on Provincial Highway No. 20 Nan Heng Highway bus stop in Tauyuan District, Padan Indigenous Experimental School stop in Shanlin District, Dashu Junior High School stop in Dashu District and Daliao Elementary School stop in Daliao District to improve the information service for bus waiting in the remote and suburban areas and around the bus stops of the schools for better bus-waiting service.
The Transportation Bureau said that with the sunny conditions in the south of Taiwan, the solar-powered e-paper smart bus stops use solar panels for power supply and can operate continuously for 20 days without sunshine. 40 solar-powered e-paper smart bus stops will use the latest e-paper technology, which is both energy-saving and carbon-reducing and will allow the bus ride to be smarter and friendlier!