The 513 Spring Couplets Bus is back on the road again this year—will traditional culture disappear if we can no longer buy red paper couplets in the future?
▲ The “Spring Couplets Bus” transformation, done just before Chinese New Year, has entered its fifth year. (Photo / Liao [name])
Reported by You [name] / Taipei
The 513 bus, which travels between Fu Jen Catholic University and National Taiwan University Hospital Station, has been covered in red spring couplets from today (the 17th) onward. Passengers may notice this festive makeover. This is the fifth year that the “1la1” club, founded by Liao [name] — a graduate of Fu Jen Catholic University in New Taipei City — has transformed buses into “Spring Couplets Buses” just before Chinese New Year. This year, even young people from Taiwan’s diplomatic allies Nauru, Tuvalu, and the Marshall Islands have joined in the activity. However, during the purchase of couplets this year, Liao was told by one elderly vendor: “There won’t be many couplets next year—you’d better stock up on them now!”
▲ This year, even young people from Taiwan’s diplomatic allies Nauru, Tuvalu, and the Marshall Islands have joined in. (Photo / Liao [name])
The project to decorate the “Spring Couplets Bus” has now entered its fifth year. Every year before Chinese New Year, Liao would gather friends online to write wishes, poetry, and blessings in various styles on the couplets. These were then carefully selected and arranged before being posted onto the buses, turning them into moving pieces of traditional culture, allowing passengers to feel the warmth of the season. This is an important traditional custom carried out before the Lunar New Year by the “1la1” club.
Liao explained that the concept of the “1la1” team is to inspire people to take meaningful actions together, “Many people ask why it’s called 513 — because when we founded ‘1la1,’ I was still studying at Fu Jen Catholic University, and the closest bus line was the 513. At the time, we hoped people around us could all take part.” For Fu Jen students, the 513 bus holds a special “revolutionary bond” from going to and from class, and remains one of the most cherished memories from their school days.
However, in its fifth year, while purchasing couplets this year, Liao was told by one elderly vendor: “There won’t be many couplets next year!” Traditional couplet-making in Taiwan is facing a decline, making it difficult to source them this and last year. “I felt there was a sense of crisis. Taiwanese traditional culture is gradually fading—if we don’t act now, it might be lost,” Liao said.
▲ % Red couplets bring a splash of color and creativity to the bus interiors. (Photo / Liao [name])
What started as a small effort to create a Christmas atmosphere on the bus — by hanging handles and interactive cards — turned out to be so much fun for both drivers and passengers that it evolved into the “Spring Couplets Bus” for the Lunar New Year. Now in its fifth year, this year’s event saw participants from Nauru, Tuvalu, and the Marshall Islands, with some even taking leave from Miaoli just to come to Taipei to write couplets. The youngest participants were the entire sixth-grade class 6 from Lixing Elementary School in Taipei, who used their creativity to paint blessings for passengers on the couplet papers.
From now until the end of the Lunar New Year period, passengers riding the 513 bus as well as shuttle buses from Sanchong Bus Terminal and routes to Taoyuan will be able to enjoy the fun and festive couplet decorations. All money boxes on the 513 buses have also been labeled with characters for “fullness” or “wealth.” Many of the couplets are creatively warm, reminding passengers to thank the driver upon exiting, stay energized, and embrace the arrival of the new year. Liao hopes this heartwarming tradition will continue, allowing more people to experience the joy of the season during the Lunar New Year.
▲ % Drivers wear cute hats too—how can you not smile? (Photo / Liao [name])
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