Most households in Hsinchu and Zhubei end up with a scooter, a car or both, and that's the honest starting point. But you don't need one on day one. City and county buses, the Science Park shuttles and YouBike cover more than newcomers expect, and a NT$288 monthly pass covers most of them. Use them while you work out where you'll live, and get your licence paperwork moving in parallel.
- Bus routes and live arrivals Hsinchu County bus site (it lists Hsinchu City routes too)
- Pay Tap an EasyCard or iPASS
- Monthly pass TPASS Hsinchu City + County, NT$288 for 30 days: buses, TRA, YouBike's first 30 minutes
- YouBike NT$10 per 30 minutes (standard bike, first 4 hours), Hsinchu City, County and Science Park
- Driving on a foreign licence An IDP from a reciprocal country covers 30 days; longer needs an endorsement or a Taiwan licence
Buses
BUS Hsinchu City buses
Most city routes start from Hsinchu TRA Station or a nearby terminus and fan out across the three districts. A few you're likely to use:
- 182 and the Pioneer Bus (先導公車): city centre, Guangfu Road, the universities, the Science Park and the HSR station. The main cross-river link to Zhubei's HSR district.
- 2: Hsinchu TRA to NYCU.
- Blue Line 15 (藍15區): Hsinchu TRA to Nanliao (南寮), for the fishing harbour and the coast.
- Blue Line 1 (藍線1區): a loop from Hsinchu TRA to Zhuzhong.
- 52 and 53: the TRA's Xinzhuang Station to City Hall; 81: Xinzhuang Station to Guqifeng (古奇峰).
BUS Hsinchu County buses
- Express buses (快捷公車) link the county's towns to the HSR and the Science Park: Express 1 (County Hall to the Science Park, weekdays), Express 5 (Hukou Industrial Park to the HSR), Express 6 (Zhudong to Neiwan Bridge and Jianshi), Express 7 (Zhubei City Office to the HSR), Express 8 (Zhudong to Zhubei via Zhuzhong and the HSR), Express 9 (Zhubei's Shengli 8th Street to the HSR, Hsinchu TRA and NYCU's Boai campus).
- Zhubei residents' free buses (竹北市民免費公車), routes 60 to 68: loops from the former Carrefour building in Zhubei (stop name 家樂福) to the HSR, Liujia, County Hall, Zhubei TRA and outlying villages. Check who rides free before you rely on it.
- Happiness Buses (幸福巴士) serve rural townships, and there are tourist routes too, including the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle's Guanwu line from the HSR station.
BUS Intercity buses
Most leave from Hsinchu Bus Station (新竹轉運站), beside Hsinchu TRA, and stop along Guangfu Road by NTHU and NYCU on the way to the freeway:
- 1822 (Kuo-Kuang) and 2011 (Haotai) to Taipei Bus Station; 1728 (Asia-Link) to Taipei's Ren'ai Road via Freeway 3, stopping in the Science Park. More in Taipei and the airport.
- 1820 (Kuo-Kuang) from Taipei to Zhudong, via Longtan, Guanxi and Qionglin.
- 1866 to Taichung, and 1250 to Taoyuan Airport.
- Regional routes in the 56xx and 58xx series run to Xinfeng, Hukou, Xinpu, Guanxi, Zhudong and Miaoli.
Timetables and fares for these are on the Highway Bureau's intercity bus site.
BIKE YouBike and cycling
YouBike 2.0 runs across Hsinchu City, Hsinchu County and the Science Park as one system.
| Bike | Fare |
|---|---|
| YouBike 2.0 (standard) | NT$10 per 30 min for the first 4 hours, NT$20 per 30 min from 4 to 8 hours, NT$40 per 30 min after that |
| YouBike 2.0E (electric) | NT$20 per 30 min for the first 2 hours, NT$40 per 30 min after that |
- Register in the YouBike app or on the website and link an EasyCard or iPASS, then tap to rent. Your card balance can't be below zero.
- Single rides without registering are credit card only, with a NT$3,000 pre-authorisation, and don't get the TPASS discount.
- With a Taoyuan-Hsinchu-Miaoli TPASS on your registered card, the first 30 minutes of every ride are free.
For longer rides, the riverside and coastal paths are covered in the coast and cycling.
CAR Scooters and cars: the licence
Sort this out before you need it. Which route applies depends on your nationality, your residence status and the class on your licence, so treat this as a map, not legal advice, and check with a Motor Vehicles Office (監理所) for your case.
- The first 30 days: an International Driving Permit. If you hold a valid IDP from a country with a reciprocal agreement with Taiwan, you can drive for up to 30 days after you arrive.
- Staying longer on the IDP: an endorsement. After 30 days you need the IDP endorsed (簽證) at a Motor Vehicles Office. It lasts up to a year, or until your licence or residence permit expires, if sooner.
- Converting to a Taiwan licence. If you hold a valid licence from your home country and permission to stay or reside in Taiwan for six months or more (an ARC, for example), you can exchange it for a Taiwan licence of the same class without a driving test, where Taiwan and your country have reciprocity. You'll need a health check, and your licence verified by a Taiwan overseas mission or by your country's office in Taiwan, with a Chinese translation if it isn't in English.
- Check your country on the Highway Bureau's reciprocity table. Not every country's IDP or licence is accepted, and the rules differ for each.
- Check the class. A car licence doesn't cover a scooter. Most scooters on the road here are over 50cc, which typically needs a full motorcycle class on your licence or IDP.
If your licence can't be converted, you'll need to sit the Taiwan tests. The Motor Vehicles Office can tell you what applies to you.
Renting a scooter or car
Scooter rental shops cluster near the stations, and car rental firms have desks at the HSR station (Car Plus and Hotai). A reputable shop asks for your licence and IDP and copies them. If one doesn't ask, walk away.
Parking
Before you rent a flat, ask whether a car or scooter space comes with it, and what it costs if not; it's often separate. At HSR Hsinchu Station, parking is NT$50 an hour for cars (NT$350 a day maximum in lots P1 and P2) and NT$10 an hour for scooters. Science Park car parks are listed on the bureau's traffic site.
TAXI Taxis and Uber
- Taxis wait at both main stations. At HSR Hsinchu, THSR lists Metro Taxi: 0800-000943, or 55178 from a mobile.
- Uber operates in Hsinchu, including taxi requests in the app. Uber itself warns that pickups can take longer than in bigger cities, so book ahead for an early flight or train.
- Have your destination written in Chinese. "The station" means nothing until you say which one: 高鐵新竹站 for the HSR, 新竹火車站 for the TRA.
→ Commuting to the Science Park · Your first 30 days · Trains in Hsinchu
Sources: Hsinchu County bus information (route lists by type, routes and stops); Highway Bureau intercity bus timetables (operators for 182, 1250, 1728, 1820, 1822, 2011); THSR, Hsinchu Station (buses, taxis, rental cars, parking); YouBike, Hsinchu fares and Hsinchu region page; iPASS, TPASS plans; Road Traffic Safety Rules Article 55 (IDP, endorsement) and Article 50 (exchanging a foreign licence); Highway Bureau, reciprocity table; Uber, Hsinchu; Science Park Bureau, transport. Checked November 2026. This is a practical guide, not legal advice.