Taipei Senior Citizen Card could be used on TRA trains in future: Ko

Taipei, April 25 (CNA) Registered Taipei residents who hold the city's Senior Citizen Card could in the future also use it to take free rides on trains operated by the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA), Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said Monday.

A timetable for this additional usage has not yet been decided, as the city government continues to hold further discussions with the TRA, Ko said as he presented a report on the city's growing aged population at a Taipei City Council hearing.

The card, which can be used by the city's registered residents aged 65 and above who are either citizens or permanent residents (those holding Alien Permanent Resident Certificates), contains 480 points that are topped up every month by the Taipei government, with 1 point equivalent to NT$1.

The points on the card can be used to take buses, Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), taxis, and YouBike, as well as at any of the city's 12 district sports centers, according to the city government.

The number of registered citizens and permanent residents in Taipei aged 65 and above totaled 504,028 as of February this year, which accounts for over 20 percent of the city's population, Ko said.

As the city's number and proportion of aging people are expected to continue rising, this means more people will use this card for their transportation, which would greatly increase the city's expenditure, said Ko.

The mayor projected that by 2031, the city's allocated budget for the Senior Citizen Card would likely be much higher than it is now, increasing by as much as NT$419.22 million, though he did not specify the current budget.