Reckless road behaviour by non-motorists on the rise?

The new forms of personal transport are slowly taking to the main roads on Singapore.

Jonathan Lim| October 07, 12:59 PM

If you were on Facebook in the past week it is likely that you would have seen at least two or three videos on social media where non-motorists are involved in accidents or incidents.

Here's what was circulating in the last seven days online:

Cyclist'>
on electric bicycle beats red light and collided with taxi.

Posted by Beh Chia Lor - Singapore Road on Wednesday, 30 September 2015

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of teenage cyclists and pillion on illegally modified ebike speeding down Tampines Ave 1 without protective...

Posted by Beh Chia Lor - Singapore Road on Tuesday, 29 September 2015

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cyclist came out from ION Orchard stretch and cycled across the traffic junction to outside of Shaw House on his...

Posted by Beh Chia Lor - Singapore Road on Friday, 2 October 2015

 All these incidents involved people who were neither driving a vehicle nor riding a motorcycle. Is there an emerging trend where non-motorist road-users are becoming more reckless?

While it is tempting to attribute the increased frequency of such videos to the fact that more cars now have in-vehicle cameras and they are just documenting what has been going on for years, this discounts the fact that personal mobility devices - such as e-bikes, e-scooters, kick scooters, one wheel e-scooters - are gaining mass market adoption in Singapore.

According to a recent Straits Times article ("Modified e-bikes raise safety concerns"), an 81-year-old man died on the scene after the e-bike he was riding was involved in an accident with a trailer along Lower Delta Road on Oct 4, at around 10.15am.

Straits Times reported that more than 11,600 e-bicycles have been approved by the Land Transport Authority (LTA).

The roads are beginning to see more new forms of personal transport. While there are strict rules governing e-bicycles, has Singapore's road culture evolved to accommodate these new transport options?

To answer this question, one only needs to look at how motorists view cyclists and vice versa. The relationship is tenuous at best.

The Government has sought to make cycling as a viable alternative by linking the Park Connector Network around the island. And this solution took several years to implement. Would this solve the tension between petrol-powered and man-powered vehicles? Only time will tell.

Unfortunately, the number of errant riders fined for illegal modifications has held steady. Straits Times noted that 459 summons were issued in the first five months of 2015, while the number was 1,042 in 2014. This is despite heavy fines.

With e-scooters and e-bikes becoming too fast for pedestrian pavements, the question is whether Singapore's road culture is ready to except this new type of commuter who may not have a driver's/rider's license and is using 'vehicles' that can easily outpace bicycles on the main roads.

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