SINGAPORE: 132 personal mobility devices (PMDs) have been seized by the authorities so far this year, with 42 of them in April alone – the highest number per month this year, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said, as it intensifies its clamp-down on errant cyclists and PMD users.
Thirty-three devices were seized in January; 24 in February and 33 in March, an LTA spokesperson told Channel NewsAsia on Friday (May 12).
“The Land Transport Authority has been intensifying enforcement efforts to deter unsafe and reckless riding behaviour by cyclists and personal mobility device users on public paths,” the spokesperson said.
Since a dedicated active mobility enforcement team was set up in May 2016, LTA said it has conducted more than 1,688 enforcement deployments across Singapore. It also issued more than 1,886 advisories to riders caught riding in an unsafe manner on footpaths and cycling paths.
Channel NewsAsia followed one of LTA’s Active Mobility Enforcement teams on Friday and watched as officers seized seven PMDs and a power-assisted bicycle (PAB) in an hour.
“This bicycle – you’re not supposed to be using it on a normal footway,” the LTA officer told a bike owner, a young man who appeared to be in his early twenties. The two officers checked the man’s ID, inspected the PAB, noting its maximum speed and a throttle on the right handle. They seized the bike, but not before handing him a brochure with the do’s and don’ts of using such a vehicle.
Those found illegally modifying or selling non-compliant bicycles, PMDs or PABs can be fined up to S$5,000.
An LTA officer speaking with the owner of a personal mobility device early on Friday morning (May 12). (Photo: Kenneth Lim)
In January, a bill was passed in Parliament to impose stiffer penalties for errant PMD users, in part due to a string of accidents and incidents involving such devices in recent years. Electric bicycles were banned from footpaths while PMDs like skateboards, kick-scooters, e-scooters and hoverboards may not be used on roads.
According to a 2016 news release, active mobility officers will also be equipped with foldable bicycles to facilitate their patrols, and speed guns to deter speeding.
