CALL FOR CALM: Some of the disputes on the Taipei MRT escalated into fights while some passengers pepper-sprayed others 《TAIPEI TIMES》 Bumping cause of most MRT disputes - 焦點 - - 趣味新聞網

People throng Nangang Exhibition Hall MRT Station in Taipei in an undated photograph. Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times

CALL FOR CALM: Some of the disputes on the Taipei MRT escalated into fights, while some passengers pepper-sprayed others, the rapid transit police said

By Liu Ching-hou and Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff reporter, with staff writer

Most disputes reported on the Taipei MRT system this year were caused by passengers bumping into each other, the Taipei Police Department’s Rapid Transit Division said.

A total of 209 dispute reports have been filed on the Taipei MRT since the beginning of this year, police said, adding that 65 percent of them involved people bumping into each other or stepping on somebody’s foot.

Twenty-nine of the complaints led to lawsuits over the offense of causing bodily harm, division data showed.

One of the disputes involved a woman tripping on a baby carriage and grazing her lips at Yuanshan MRT Station on Oct. 22, the division said.

On Nov. 2, a conflict arose at Ximen MRT Station after a woman pushed aside an umbrella held by another passenger in front of her, it said.

Common causes of disputes include not giving up one’s seat to those in need, blocking another’s way and not wearing a mask, police said, adding that the disputes sometimes escalated into physical altercations or involved the use of pepper spray.

Passengers can press a red alert button to notify staff when a dispute occurs on an MRT train, the division said, adding that station personnel would also ask police to check security footage to help resolve the dispute.

Passengers should stay calm while riding the MRT and try to resolve disputes with sympathy and consideration, it added.

In related news, the Taipei District Court has ruled against a compensation request by a woman who broke her arm while walking up an escalator at Shantao Temple MRT Station in June 2020.

The woman, surnamed He （何）, had demanded that Taipei Rapid Transit Corp and the company that manufactured the escalator pay her more than NT$650,000 （US$20,694） in compensation.

However, the court said that He was not holding on to the escalator handrail when she fell.

The woman said she had to walk up the escalator, as it was out of service, but tripped on the escalator step and fell, sustaining a fracture to her right arm, as well as grazes and other injuries.

He’s lawyer said she was not holding on to the handrail because she was walking on the left side of the escalator to overtake other passengers.

However, the court said there were not many passengers at the time of the accident, the station was well-lit and there were warning signs regarding the use of escalators, ruling that the defendants were not responsible for He’s fall.

The ruling can be appealed.

Additional reporting by Wen Yu-te

新聞來源： TAIPEI TIMES

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