NEW TAIPEI (TVBS News) — As the Qingming Festival draws near, the annual surge in users for New Taipei City's online memorial service system continues to grow steadily. Last year alone, the system recorded over 640,000 users, pushing its cumulative total to 1.76 million. This year's anticipation is high, with expectations set to exceed 2 million users.
The online memorial service system was launched by New Taipei City in 2013. Initially, the usage rate was less than 10,000 people per year. However, after the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020, online worship became one of the public choices due to crowd control measures.
In 2021, the New Taipei City Civil Affairs Bureau revamped the online memorial service system. It includes three sections: "Public Columbarium," "Eco-Burial," and "Military Martyrs' Shrine." Users can directly worship online without logging in. The worship scenes are all filmed on location and made into dynamic videos following the worship process.
For those who need to visit graves in person, the New Taipei City government has activated a total of 140 Qingming worship service stations and 34 shuttle bus routes from March 16 to April 7. Traffic control will be implemented at each district's main intersections of cemeteries during peak hours on March 30, 31, and April 4 to 7. The public is advised to use public transportation.
Citizens praised the convenience of online worship, saying it is sincere and can be used all year round without being restricted by space and time.
