TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taipei officials moved swiftly Tuesday (June 17) to suspend 20 electric buses after a battery malfunction triggered a fire in a public transit vehicle, prompting heightened safety concerns across the capital's transportation network. The Taipei City Public Transportation Office, the agency overseeing the city's transit systems, has also mandated comprehensive safety inspections for all 114 buses of the identical model, with examinations to be completed within an ambitious three-day window.
The emergency measures come after a battery system failure ignited a blaze aboard an electric bus traveling along Dunhua North Road (敦化北路), a major thoroughfare in Taipei's bustling Songshan District (松山區), during Monday evening commuter hours. The quick-thinking driver, identified only as Mr. Chang (張), immediately halted the vehicle when he detected the malfunction and successfully evacuated all seven passengers before flames engulfed the rear of the bus, averting what officials acknowledged could have been a potentially tragic incident.
Liao Yuan-ling, Secretary-General of the Taipei City Public Transportation Office (北市公共運輸處主任秘書廖苑伶), revealed during a hastily arranged press briefing that the affected vehicle belongs to a fleet of 114 identical electric buses currently operating throughout Taipei's extensive public transportation network. These vehicles, part of the city's ambitious green energy initiative launched in 2023, are distributed among four different private transportation companies contracted by the municipal government to provide public transit services across the capital region.
Officials have immediately pulled from service all 20 electric buses operated by Metropolitan Transport Corporation (大都會客運) and two additional vehicles from Danan Bus (大南客運) after preliminary inspections identified concerning abnormalities in their charging systems. Transportation authorities have simultaneously issued a directive requiring all bus operators within the city limits to conduct thorough examinations of their electric vehicle charging infrastructure and battery management systems. Companies must submit detailed improvement reports documenting their findings and remediation efforts before affected vehicles can return to passenger service.
Emergency response protocols were activated at 8:47 p.m. Monday when authorities received reports of the vehicle fire, with firefighting units arriving within minutes to the scene on Dunhua North Road. Crews successfully contained and extinguished the flames by approximately 9 p.m., while police established a safety perimeter and implemented traffic diversions around the incident site. Transportation officials credited Mr. Chang's rapid response and adherence to emergency protocols — including immediately cutting power systems and prioritizing passenger evacuation — as crucial factors that prevented injuries in what could have escalated into a more serious safety incident. ◼