Updated Thursday, June 28, 2007 0:00 am TWN, The China Post

A whole lot of slipping and sliding going on

In Taipei it rains, on average, 129 days a year. That’s a lot. How is it then that the city’s streets are woefully unprepared to deal with this fact? Public sidewalks are mainly uncovered and during rains, people mostly walk along the inner walkways that line the fronts of business establishments and shops. Many of these shops, stores and offices use marble or slick tiles for this flooring! The lack of logic behind these choices is astounding. Marble, when wet, is a terribly slippery substance, as are many of the types of tiles used. Why not go all the way and spread banana peels, oil and ball bearings across the walkways as well? Imagine a pregnant woman, elderly or disabled person trying to move across what is essentially a sea of wet glass — the potential for serious injury is stratospheric.

The walkways are semi-private ones and as such, slightly more difficult for the city to regulate. But even more ludicrous than the walkways are the public roads. In most functioning nations, zebra crossings, arrow indicators, and dividing lines are painted with a special, non-slick paint. This is the case even in the Philippines, which is considered by some to be a third-world country. How is it then that Taiwan’s public streets are ice-skating rinks when wet? And this is at least 129 times a year. Nearly every motorist has a tale of a slide or near-slide along what should be world-class streets. These things ought not to be so.

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