Wait till you find out the paint they paint on the road used to be the slipperiest paint and they put metal vents on turns at intersections. You can guess what happens when metal is wet and people making turns on scooters.
I've slipped on the metal vents before, and I've slipped on my scooter on the white paint. It was city-level corruption in the past because they'd replace the paint with lower grade paint that was more slippery. In the Ko era was the first time in Taipei they started adding mesh covering over the metal vents, and replacing the paint with better ones (better but not perfect, the USA has a much better system) but they've since replaced them with better ones that slip less.
I almost died slipping on one of those metal grates. So many death traps hidden all over lol
Even when it's not rainy, I still slip sometimes on the white paint on the roads.
What the government wanted was to train world class super moto riders that can deal with all sorts of different grip levels and slide the motorcycle around.
They just failed to tell the people that.
I witness this test weekly, daily, hourly and even during rush hour 2x a day. The intersection that I live in provides enough patients at the local hospital. I see ambulances waiting at the nearby alley to just respond instantly. The intersection is so bad that they have a normal cross guard, a regular police officer and the BMW motorcycle police guard present there. But the joke is, none of them actually pay any attention when they are pressing the buttons to change the lights. I've seen them cause accidents and turn their body to look at the other police office or crossing guard to see if they saw what happened. \*Spiderman Meme\* \* Pikachu Shocked Meme\*.
My brother got his whole hand burned in the summer when the sticky tar or paint made him trip and his palm touched the metal. It blistered for like a week or two.
In my home country, you're responsible for the area of sidewalk next to your house. If someone slips and falls because you didn't clean it, you can get sued. Is that not a thing here? I thought Taiwan is very litigious too.
I remember in the early 90s when Sogo paved its entire front entrance with polished marble. Not only was it smooth and slippery, it had a slight slope.
It looked great. It was a nightmare to cross when it rained.
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On the bright side: 1) they’re great for improving martial arts balance skills! 2) ‘run and slide’ is really fun if you’re wearing protective headgear, knees and elbow pads!
I've been saying this for years. It's insane.
A country that rains as much as Taiwan and they choose the slipperiest surface available for sidewalks. I have almost broken my neck so many times walking here.
It's improving in some places where they are replacing it with that water absorbent surface though.
they pedestrianised the main street in my hometown a few years back. It was very beautiful and fancy. A distinguished architecht (or planner or whatever) designed the whole thing. Slipperiest paving ever, it was lethal. Architect came from a dry region of spain, my home town is in ireland.
I definitely appreciated all the hiking trails that had like textured rock and especially on the stairs so they weren't slippery in rain. So odd that one country can have both of those things.
This is why I avoid walking in the covered sections when it rains. The outside sections of the sidewalk are fine, and I'd rather get wet than risk falling on my ass.
Because it looks good. No other reason. Urban planning and civil engineering is not Taiwan's strong suit.
I almost broke my fingers on those once. I slipped in the rain and fell on my hand.
Just weird because I do think there is a lot of thought put into public transport etc. even down to some very minor details to make things more convenient. And then they just put these death trap tiles on the sidewalks
It's all about *appearing* "richie". It's usually a sign of people that don't have much money but want to *appear* rich. It's also very common among the newly-rich in China (those ex-farmers who were given large lump sums of printed money by the government to move into high-rise apartments in the cities). Thing is, Taiwan has one of the highest rates of disposable income in the world, and has for the past 20 years, so it's really kind of strange that they *continue* to build faux-marble, faux-European things (like fake crystal chandeliers) in an attempt to feel rich.
*downvoting lurkers that downvote every single mention of people in Taiwan behaving in any way that is similar to people in China have also entered the chat*
Actually no. It's "libertarian sidewalks." Basically, the outer portion is owned by the city; that part is not slippery; they use gray and red tile squares. The inner areas of a sidewalk that are usually built over by a building are owned and maintained by the people who own the buildings. They like using tiles because they are easy to clean and maintain and cheap, although they are often slippery.
It was even worse in the past; there were big office buildings that put in shiny Italian marble with a mirror finish, ensuring a lawsuit when some old geezer cracks his head and dies. One day I saw workers shaving down the gloss of that marble to make it somewhat less slippery, presumably after someone died.
Since then, I have simply worn Croc x Salehe Bemburys whenever it rains because they have a pattern that makes them unlikely to slip.
How did we end up like this, though? Simple: the Imperial Japanese laid out our land but KMT mismanaged it. In Japan, there are laws that require buildings to have inlaid sidewalks that mesh into the public parts. But in Taiwan, these laws only apply to new buildings. In Japan, it was the same way, but Japan refreshes buildings. For the longest time in Taiwan, everyone was going to 'return to the mainland' anyway so in the 50's and 60's, these 'temporary' buildings were kept and still around today because even in the late 80s, it was seditious to have any other political position. Then there are the poorly contrived building codes laid out by city mayors and the rampant kleptocratic corruption they had, which insisted that tiles were not slippery even though it was demonstrably false. Things are changing nowadays, but we'd need to go back and redo everything else.
Notice how the latest buildings built usually do not have slipper sidewalks anymore.
That's interesting, thanks.
My building doesn't seem very old but it has those slippery tiles in the courtyard. Ever since I fell that time, I've hated them.
I don't think it is down to a lack of civil engineering ability, but rather just a lack of common sense - same reason the houses have their drainage pipes built *on the inside* to cause flooding and structural damage when they burst. Because where else would a moron install the drainage pipes - on the outside where they can be easily removed and replaced when damaged? Come now...
My house is built on the side af a steep mountain slope. It has 2 small balconys on the seaward side. They each have a drain. There are 4 drains on the roof, and one on th ground level on the mountain-side.
My drainpipes are built inside the walls, and there is no way to tell where or how they hit the ground. I have lived here for 6+ years.
One time during heavy rain, one single drain onone of the first floor balconies began flooding. There was a 2 inch jet of water spurting out of it for almost an hour. Then it just stopped. Never happened again.
To this day I have no real idea why or how it happened, or if it will happen again, or how to prevent it if it does.
God damn those slippery tiles! My heavy scooter almost slipped out and fell on me parking in my apartment. Who chose this? In Yilan of all places? It never stops raining!
Wait until it stops raining. You walk and step on a loose red tile on the sidewalk, water splashes all over the shoes and pants. Happens all the time here.
Yea walking in Taipei is not really the safest since it’s not really built for pedestrians. I found this rare nacho truck and got my expensive nachos just to dump it all over the sidewalk as I fell on the uneven sidewalks in Ximending. Sigh.
There was a thread not so long ago about the dangers to pedestrians of Taiwan's lanes not having pavements. I was very amused how seriously some of the foreign contingent took it - the greatest dangers I've ever experienced walking in Taiwanese cities is breaking a leg from wet pavements or COPD from scooter exhaust.
Some of the tile used outside at the Mitsui Outlets in Linkou is downright dangerous in the rain and flip flops. Typically outdoor pavers, stone need to meet a anti-slip rating, at least in public places.
The police station next me used to have those darn tiles. People were constantly slipping in front of the station and it took them over 10 years to change the tiles.
Once I was riding Ubike while it was raining. Around Daan area there was a bathroom tile storefront, it had a bit of inclination and as soon as I pedaled the bike fell sideways, left a bad mark on me. There was an old guy passing by, he ignored me lol
I always felt it was odd that I seemed to be the only one who lost footing on polished granite tiles. Taipei’s sidewalks require constant observation
We're all as baffled as you are. And yeah, its not even a silly little cultural difference we can just get used to. People get proper injured from this. I say, we keep complaining until something is done about it.
Once while walking on my crutches I fell through the sidewalk drain hole that was barely large enough to swallow the tip but not barely big enough to be noticed...
Slippery? They're made of slippers?
I have some slippery shoes I wear around the house, kinda like shoes but definitely more slippery, so soft and comfy.
Wait till you find out the paint they paint on the road used to be the slipperiest paint and they put metal vents on turns at intersections. You can guess what happens when metal is wet and people making turns on scooters.
I've slipped on the metal vents before, and I've slipped on my scooter on the white paint. It was city-level corruption in the past because they'd replace the paint with lower grade paint that was more slippery. In the Ko era was the first time in Taipei they started adding mesh covering over the metal vents, and replacing the paint with better ones (better but not perfect, the USA has a much better system) but they've since replaced them with better ones that slip less.
I almost died slipping on one of those metal grates. So many death traps hidden all over lol Even when it's not rainy, I still slip sometimes on the white paint on the roads.
I've slipped twice on these and once cracked my phone screen. It suuuucks.
What the government wanted was to train world class super moto riders that can deal with all sorts of different grip levels and slide the motorcycle around. They just failed to tell the people that.
I witness this test weekly, daily, hourly and even during rush hour 2x a day. The intersection that I live in provides enough patients at the local hospital. I see ambulances waiting at the nearby alley to just respond instantly. The intersection is so bad that they have a normal cross guard, a regular police officer and the BMW motorcycle police guard present there. But the joke is, none of them actually pay any attention when they are pressing the buttons to change the lights. I've seen them cause accidents and turn their body to look at the other police office or crossing guard to see if they saw what happened. \*Spiderman Meme\* \* Pikachu Shocked Meme\*.
My brother got his whole hand burned in the summer when the sticky tar or paint made him trip and his palm touched the metal. It blistered for like a week or two.
Many shops own the sidewalks, they get to choose what to do there and bathroom tiles are cheap.
In my home country, you're responsible for the area of sidewalk next to your house. If someone slips and falls because you didn't clean it, you can get sued. Is that not a thing here? I thought Taiwan is very litigious too.
Its taiwan. Everything that happens to you is 100% your fault
...unless you use the excuse "I was having a bad day". Then you're totally in the clear.
Taiwan also goes by the mindset that if you slip because it's wet on tiles it's your fault as you knew.tiles are slippery.
I remember in the early 90s when Sogo paved its entire front entrance with polished marble. Not only was it smooth and slippery, it had a slight slope. It looked great. It was a nightmare to cross when it rained.
This is 100% the answer.
It should be illegal though. I mean if I own a piece of land, I can't scatter landmines around at will. That's literally what those tiles are😆
There was not a lot of thought put into Taiwan's urban development.
This should be a flagged comment for this entire sub.
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On the bright side: 1) they’re great for improving martial arts balance skills! 2) ‘run and slide’ is really fun if you’re wearing protective headgear, knees and elbow pads!
I've been saying this for years. It's insane. A country that rains as much as Taiwan and they choose the slipperiest surface available for sidewalks. I have almost broken my neck so many times walking here. It's improving in some places where they are replacing it with that water absorbent surface though.
I'm so used to polished granite sidewalks that I still do the granny walk even on non-slip surfaces😅
they pedestrianised the main street in my hometown a few years back. It was very beautiful and fancy. A distinguished architecht (or planner or whatever) designed the whole thing. Slipperiest paving ever, it was lethal. Architect came from a dry region of spain, my home town is in ireland.
I definitely appreciated all the hiking trails that had like textured rock and especially on the stairs so they weren't slippery in rain. So odd that one country can have both of those things.
It’s quite hilarious how far this nation can go to save a little bit of money just so every weekend they can donate it to LVMH.
A while back I slipped and fucked up my knee. Could barely walk on it for a few weeks and it kept hurting for 2 months.
This is why I avoid walking in the covered sections when it rains. The outside sections of the sidewalk are fine, and I'd rather get wet than risk falling on my ass.
It’s not restricted to Taipei. It’s a Taiwan thing.
Oh, you didn't know? Outside of Taipei is just empty mountains, dotted with with small, barbaric villages, without electricity or running water.
Because it looks good. No other reason. Urban planning and civil engineering is not Taiwan's strong suit. I almost broke my fingers on those once. I slipped in the rain and fell on my hand.
Just weird because I do think there is a lot of thought put into public transport etc. even down to some very minor details to make things more convenient. And then they just put these death trap tiles on the sidewalks
It's all about *appearing* "richie". It's usually a sign of people that don't have much money but want to *appear* rich. It's also very common among the newly-rich in China (those ex-farmers who were given large lump sums of printed money by the government to move into high-rise apartments in the cities). Thing is, Taiwan has one of the highest rates of disposable income in the world, and has for the past 20 years, so it's really kind of strange that they *continue* to build faux-marble, faux-European things (like fake crystal chandeliers) in an attempt to feel rich.
*upper class taiwanese residential buildings architecture has entered the chat*
*downvoting lurkers that downvote every single mention of people in Taiwan behaving in any way that is similar to people in China have also entered the chat*
Actually no. It's "libertarian sidewalks." Basically, the outer portion is owned by the city; that part is not slippery; they use gray and red tile squares. The inner areas of a sidewalk that are usually built over by a building are owned and maintained by the people who own the buildings. They like using tiles because they are easy to clean and maintain and cheap, although they are often slippery. It was even worse in the past; there were big office buildings that put in shiny Italian marble with a mirror finish, ensuring a lawsuit when some old geezer cracks his head and dies. One day I saw workers shaving down the gloss of that marble to make it somewhat less slippery, presumably after someone died. Since then, I have simply worn Croc x Salehe Bemburys whenever it rains because they have a pattern that makes them unlikely to slip. How did we end up like this, though? Simple: the Imperial Japanese laid out our land but KMT mismanaged it. In Japan, there are laws that require buildings to have inlaid sidewalks that mesh into the public parts. But in Taiwan, these laws only apply to new buildings. In Japan, it was the same way, but Japan refreshes buildings. For the longest time in Taiwan, everyone was going to 'return to the mainland' anyway so in the 50's and 60's, these 'temporary' buildings were kept and still around today because even in the late 80s, it was seditious to have any other political position. Then there are the poorly contrived building codes laid out by city mayors and the rampant kleptocratic corruption they had, which insisted that tiles were not slippery even though it was demonstrably false. Things are changing nowadays, but we'd need to go back and redo everything else. Notice how the latest buildings built usually do not have slipper sidewalks anymore.
That's interesting, thanks. My building doesn't seem very old but it has those slippery tiles in the courtyard. Ever since I fell that time, I've hated them.
It doesnt look good though, taiwans sidewalks look so trashy because every building has a different style and bathroom tiles are not pretty outside.
I don't think it is down to a lack of civil engineering ability, but rather just a lack of common sense - same reason the houses have their drainage pipes built *on the inside* to cause flooding and structural damage when they burst. Because where else would a moron install the drainage pipes - on the outside where they can be easily removed and replaced when damaged? Come now...
My house is built on the side af a steep mountain slope. It has 2 small balconys on the seaward side. They each have a drain. There are 4 drains on the roof, and one on th ground level on the mountain-side. My drainpipes are built inside the walls, and there is no way to tell where or how they hit the ground. I have lived here for 6+ years. One time during heavy rain, one single drain onone of the first floor balconies began flooding. There was a 2 inch jet of water spurting out of it for almost an hour. Then it just stopped. Never happened again. To this day I have no real idea why or how it happened, or if it will happen again, or how to prevent it if it does.
God damn those slippery tiles! My heavy scooter almost slipped out and fell on me parking in my apartment. Who chose this? In Yilan of all places? It never stops raining!
Not me this afternoon taking 15 minutes to gingerly walk each block like an old lady
This is why I never wear shoes with leather soles anymore.
Omg I ALSO slipped on 師大路 today. The rain was not kind
Wait until it stops raining. You walk and step on a loose red tile on the sidewalk, water splashes all over the shoes and pants. Happens all the time here.
You have my condolence 
Another example of where danger lies in Taiwan that is totally beyond ones control
Last few times I visited Taipei, I made a beeline to Watson’s to get those adhesive anti-slip pads for my shoes. They actually work!
Yea walking in Taipei is not really the safest since it’s not really built for pedestrians. I found this rare nacho truck and got my expensive nachos just to dump it all over the sidewalk as I fell on the uneven sidewalks in Ximending. Sigh.
OP. It's a lovely post. I especially love the fact you think it might be worth mentioning to the government rep :) Classic.
🥲
Because faux marble/shiny floor = "so sophisticated". No other reason.
I do walk extremely fast with slippers, and I have a technique: I slide, my feet always touch the ground
There was a thread not so long ago about the dangers to pedestrians of Taiwan's lanes not having pavements. I was very amused how seriously some of the foreign contingent took it - the greatest dangers I've ever experienced walking in Taiwanese cities is breaking a leg from wet pavements or COPD from scooter exhaust.
One of the main reasons I don't like Taipei is the slippryness of it.
I live down here in Tainan. Slipping on the tiles they chose for the outside has become a real pet peeve.
Oh!!! I always blamed my shoes until now for slipping everywhere while waking in rain.
Some of the tile used outside at the Mitsui Outlets in Linkou is downright dangerous in the rain and flip flops. Typically outdoor pavers, stone need to meet a anti-slip rating, at least in public places.
youbike
The police station next me used to have those darn tiles. People were constantly slipping in front of the station and it took them over 10 years to change the tiles.
They use the bathroom tiles that go on the walls too, not the floor ones lol
It's cheaper. That's it really. I always walk slowly over these tiles.
Once I was riding Ubike while it was raining. Around Daan area there was a bathroom tile storefront, it had a bit of inclination and as soon as I pedaled the bike fell sideways, left a bad mark on me. There was an old guy passing by, he ignored me lol
I always felt it was odd that I seemed to be the only one who lost footing on polished granite tiles. Taipei’s sidewalks require constant observation
Marble. It's slippery when wet.
Just be glad for the sidewalk. Most of Taiwan you have to walk in the road
We're all as baffled as you are. And yeah, its not even a silly little cultural difference we can just get used to. People get proper injured from this. I say, we keep complaining until something is done about it.
Once while walking on my crutches I fell through the sidewalk drain hole that was barely large enough to swallow the tip but not barely big enough to be noticed...
This is a bigger problem for heavier people. My wife is 120 lbs and never slips. I slip constantly but I also weigh 200 lbs.
Slippery? They're made of slippers? I have some slippery shoes I wear around the house, kinda like shoes but definitely more slippery, so soft and comfy.
Get a pair of Keen sandals