Recently, cycling has been an ‘in’ thing that everyone seemed to be doing. Be it cycling around Singapore in 15 hours to checking out various landmarks on our tiny red dot in The Great Singapore Cycle, all these activities are great ways to keep fit.
But of course, there are always those black sheep that will turn this fun thing illegal.
More Cyclists Have Been Caught Riding on Expressways This Year
According to statistics from the Land Transport Authority (LTA), 44 cyclists were caught on expressways between January to April 2021, whereas as compared to the whole of last year, only 50 cyclists were caught on expressways.
The figures include cyclists working their leg muscles (conventional pedal bicycles) and cyclists working their bicycle’s “muscles” (power-assisted bicycles (PABs)).
In case you didn’t know, cyclists are allowed to cycle on the road. It is only illegal for them to ride on expressways and in road tunnels.
Although it is encouraging to see more people cycling as a form of exercise and for their daily commute, rule-breakers are unavoidable due to their unfamiliarity with the road network, or because they are unaware of the current regulations.
“There is also a minority who, out of convenience, knowingly break regulations by riding on expressways,” LTA said.
As you know, Singapore is a law-by-law country, which means if you break the rules, you’re going to get fined or even behind bars.
For this case, those that ride on expressways can be fined up to S$2,000 or jailed for up to six months.
Road Traffic Accidents
One of the reasons why are the rules so strict when it comes to cycling on the expressways is due to the increasing number of road traffic accidents involving cyclists.
In 2020, there were 1 fatality and 1 injury involving cyclists on PABs, and 2 injuries involving cyclists on pedal bicycles.
As compared to the year before, there were no fatalities and 3 injuries involving cyclists on pedal bicycles, and no fatalities or injuries involving cyclists on PABs.
Singapore Police Force (SPF) has yet to provide the figures for this year.
But given the number of cyclists related news popping up almost every other week, things are not looking good.
PMD Road Traffic Accidents Decreased
On the brighter side of things, road traffic accidents involving personal mobility devices (PMDs) decreased tremendously.
In 2020, there were fatalities and 50 injuries as compared to the 2 fatalities and 198 injuries in 2019.
SPF attributed the decrease in PMD traffic accidents to continued public education on safe riding habits. Additionally, they also attribute it to the Active Mobility Act that restricts all motorised PMDs to cycling paths.
Lastly, they also attribute the decrease to the ban of PMDs that do not comply with the UL2272 fire safety standard on public paths.
That’s a lot of factors they’re attributing it to but I think they’re forgetting a significant factor as well – the Circuit Breaker.
People are Cycling because of the Pandemic
One of the reasons there’s a spike in cyclists is the pandemic.
Bikemart SG’s sales manager, Mr Jason Elijah, said his shop sold at least 3 bicycles a day during the pandemic as compared to the previous sales figure of 1 bicycle a day.
“We usually tell our customers to stay off the road if they are not experienced and practise on the park connectors.”
Singapore Cycling Federation vice-president for safety and education, Mr Steven Lim, attributed the increased number of cyclists and runners to the restrictions amid the pandemic.
Chairman of the Singapore Road Safety Council, Mr Bernard Tay, thinks the greater number of cyclists on the roads could be due to more food delivery workers using bicycles as a mode of transport.
Both Mr Lim and Mr Tay urged cyclists to always abide by traffic rules and to not ride on expressways.
“All cyclists should play their part by keeping themselves and other motorists safe and refrain from cycling on the expressways, which are meant for other motorists who are travelling at higher speeds,” Mr Tay said.
Featured Image: Facebook (LTA)
