SINGAPORE: Food delivery riders affected by a footpath ban on e-scooters can get up to S$1000 in the form of a trade-in grant funded by the Government and food delivery companies, the Ministry of Transport (MOT) announced on Friday (Nov 8).
Food delivery riders have voiced concerns over how a new rule prohibiting e-scooters from footpaths would affect their livelihoods.
For riders who intend to stay on the job, the Government and three major food delivery companies – Grab, Deliveroo and Foodpanda – have set up a S$7 million e-scooter Trade-in Grant (eTG) for food delivery riders to switch to bicycles, power-assisted bicycles (PABs) or personal mobility aids (PMAs), the ministry said in a press release.
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Under the scheme, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) will match dollar-for-dollar the funding support of food delivery companies for delivery riders who trade in their e-scooters for LTA-approved devices.
Each rider can receive up to S$1,000 to trade in their e-scooter for a PAB or S$600 for a bicycle, MOT said. Riders who are eligible to use PMAs will also receive a grant of up to S$1000, the ministry added.
Senior Minister of State for Transport Lam Pin Min speaks to food delivery riders about the recent rules banning e-scooters from footpaths. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
“The eTG scheme will be administered by the food delivery companies, which are also working with retailers to bulk purchase and bring down the costs of these devices,” MOT said.
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To qualify for the grant, riders must be an existing e-scooter food delivery rider as at Nov 7, 2019, and they must surrender their devices at disposal points located at Grab, Deliveroo and Foodpanda.
Delivery riders who work for more than one company will only be eligible for one eTG grant.
Trade-ins start from Nov 15 and the eTG scheme will run till the end of the year, MOT said.
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Apart from the trade-in scheme, there will also be job search support and career services for riders who intend to leave their jobs, MOT added, provided by NTUC’s Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) and Workforce Singapore together with the three major food delivery companies.
Senior Parliamentary Secretary Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim looks through a petition with 119 signatures asking the government to regulate personal mobility devices instead of banning them. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
The Ministry of Social and Family Development’s ComCare schemes are also available to help riders with financial difficulties.
E-scooters were banned from footpaths in Singapore earlier this month after a string of accidents involving errant riders raised public concerns over safety.
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“The decision to prohibit e-scooters from footpaths was a difficult one and arose of many instances of irresponsible riding,” said MOT.
“Even as the delivery riders switch to other modes of transport, they should be mindful of safety both for themselves and other path and road users.”
