Dear Mr. Liang, Ms. Sim, et al.,

There has been some commotion after several cyclists were killed in road accidents, and after meeting with another reckless cyclists yesterday I feel I need to write to an authority about this before more people get hurt.

I am not sure which ministry (LTA? SPF?) to send this to, hence I am writing to you.

I recall that many years back there was an old man/lady being run over by a bicycle on pavement. Newspapers reported the incident and mentioned that bicycles are not allowed on pavements.

Over the years it has become common knowledge that bicycles are not allowed on pavements and people have started to cycle on the roads. I am starting to see more and more people take up cycling, but these cyclists are becoming more of a nuisance and road hog, posing not only inconvenience but danger to both themselves and road users.

I am a driver and cyclist myself and I usually cycle on pavements because I feel it is safer. I will give way to pedestrians when I meet them. Moreover my wife is not a very proficient cyclist, and I think that cycling on the road would be extremely dangerous.

I have heard from friends that they get fined $50 for cycling on pavements, which I think is ridiculous if they weren’t cycling recklessly. Enforcement should be against any reckless cyclist, be it on the road or pavement.

I’ve seen countless number of cyclists flout traffic rules, and here is one such incident causing an accident:
http://singaporeseen.stomp.com.sg/stomp/sgseen/this_urban_jungle/1279106/reckless_cyclist_runs_red_light.html

Another public video of a cyclist switching lanes recklessly at Jurong East and getting hit by a car (skip the first few seconds of the video):

Along Woodlands Road all the way to Bukit Timah which I travel daily, the road is already very bumpy, winding and narrow due to the Downtown Line MRT construction:

  • Vehicles will need to keep an entire lane distance just to avoid the cyclists around the bends.
  • During peak hour this causes traffic jams and are a nuisance as bicycles are slow moving vehicles (20-30kph max).
  • These cyclists tend not to stop at traffic lights.

Also, buses are very wide and use an entire lanes width. Since cyclists keep left and the left lanes are now mostly bus lanes, buses have to make bigger evasive maneuvers to avoid cyclists.

I would like to suggest that we allow cyclists to cycle on pavements with the exception of electric bicycles which are much heavier and can go very fast (a lot of illegal ones are around nowadays).

The rationale for my suggestion is:

  1. The probability of a pedestrian getting seriously injured being run over by a bicycle is less than having any form of motor vehicle hit a cyclist.
  2. There is no legislative requirement for cyclists to know traffic rules before they cycle on the road (e.g. basic theory test), and hence difficult to enforce.
  3. There is no legislative requirement for cyclists to be identified (e.g. number plate) and penalized for errant cycling, and hence difficult to enforce.
  4. We should not discourage people from cycling on pavements around the neighborhood. It is a cheap, green and healthy activity and can be a good family activity.
  5. I am aware that there are PCNs but the routes that PCNs take are sometimes not convenient if one uses bicycles as a mode of transport, e.g. to the market.

Sincerely,
Justin Lee