Ride the City Buses for free on Thursdays /
Ride the City Buses for free on Thursdays
◎Text by Kevin Huang
◎Photos by Chung-Hui Pao
Nations around the world have encouraged public consciousness in support of emissions controls and adopt further efficient strategies to combat climate change and high oil prices. The City of Kaohsiung is acting on curbing carbon dioxide emissions with one of its main pollutants coming from industrial emissions as a result of the city being loaded with many heavy industries. Thus, Kaohsiung City Government has implemented a series of measures to create a greener city by establishing a carbon control committee. They will promote through all perspectives, for instance, encouraging citizens to take a walk, to ride a bike and to take public transportation instead of driving vehicles.
Since the completion of Kaohsiung MRT Red Line in March this year, the MRT along with shuttle buses provides a convenient transportation network which has successfully encouraged commuters to take advantage of it.
City Buses - Free on Thursdays
Many residents travel by motorcycle; therefore Kaohsiung City Government has proposed riding city buses free on Thursdays from June 12th to September 14th, including tourist buses on weekends. The 85 routes of free buses are expected to attract more potential bus commuters, increasing bus riding by 20% and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 170-tons in the hopes of reaching its ultimate goal- making public transportation the residents' daily commuter choice.
Apart from city buses free on Thursdays, 6 routes of weekend tourist buses are free of charge during this three month interval - Gushan Ferry line, Waterfront line, Sunshine Boulevard line, Cijin line, Yencheng District line and Chaishan line. The weekend tourist bus passes through many popular sightseeing spots within the city such as Lotus Pond, Museum of Fine Arts, Sizihwan Bay, Cijin, and Love River.
Planning a new city park - Aozihdi Park
Aozihdi Park is located at the intersection of Jhihsheng Road and Nanping Road, a short walk west of the Aozihdi MRT Station, where it is considered to be the newest developing area in Kaohsiung and has valuable property. The city government desired to turn this valuable property into a public park- Aozihdi Park with the ambition of creating a world-class living environment for its citizens. This park will be extended from 5.2 acres to 10 acres. Mayor Chu Chen points out that whether in New York, Tokyo, or London world renown cities share a similar characteristic in terms of its landscaping design: their citizens all enjoy parks in large residential areas. This park is expected to be completed by the end of 2008, providing a natural leisure space for residents to relax. In addition, bike paths and eco-pool will be incorporated into this project, making the City of Kaohsiung a pleasant environment to live in.
綠色星期四 全市公車免費
◎文／侯雅婷
◎攝影／鮑忠暉
世界各國為因應全球暖化氣候變遷 ，高油價時代的來臨，節能減碳是全世界的共識，更是努力一致的目標 。產業分佈以重工業為主的高雄市也跟上腳步，高雄市政府推出一連串的減碳政策，與市民攜手打造更環保的健康城市。
陳菊市長表示，高雄市已成立節能減碳小組，計畫從整個生活面來做改善，如鼓勵市民多走路、多騎腳踏車、少開車以及多利用大眾運輸交通工具等。
今(2008)年３月捷運紅線通車後，提供便捷的大眾運輸運輸系統，配合捷運接駁公車，建構四通八達的交通網絡，大大提昇了民眾使用大眾運輸工具的意願。
綠色星期四、全市公車免費
高雄市政府推行「綠色星期四、全市公車免費」政策，從６月12日起到９月14日，每逢週四公車免費搭乘，加上假日觀光公車，全市共計82線公車全部免費搭乘，預計可增加２成公車搭乘量，減少約170噸二氧化碳排放量，鼓勵民眾多多搭乘公車及捷運等大眾運輸，讓節能減碳逐漸成為市民生活的一部份，善盡地球公民的責任。
「綠色星期四」計劃除了每週四公車免費搭乘外，計畫期間的例假日，包括高鐵鼓渡、水岸、陽光大道、旗津、鹽埕風華及柴山等六條觀光公車路線，也都免費供民眾搭乘，可暢遊蓮池潭、美術館、西子灣壽山、旗津及愛河等五大觀光風景區。
規劃都會森林公園
農十六凹仔底地區，是高雄市的新重劃區域，也是高雄發展的黃金地帶，不僅週邊高級住宅及商辦大樓林立，地價也很貴，但市政府以提供更優質的生活環境為首要考量，規畫打造一處都會森林公園，讓市民在熱鬧的市區也能享有一處優質的休憩活動空間。
陳市長指出，紐約、東京、倫敦等世界知名的城市，由政府帶頭在市區闢建綠地為例，高雄市政府於市區黃金地點打造都會森林公園，為下一代保留最優質的生活空間，；在市政府的努力之下，原計畫面積達5.2公頃的森林公園，將向北擴大至10公頃，讓市民享有國際級城市景觀規劃，這項工程將於今(2008)年底完工後，屆時，綠樹成蔭，加上自行車道，生態池等規劃，讓這個城市變得越來越迷人。