Just a few days ago, it was announced that Singapore might have a total ban on Personal Mobility Devices (PMD) if people still anyhowly ride.
According to CNA, this was announced by the Senior Minister of State for Transport, Dr Janil Puthucheary.
He said that if the behaviour of PMD riders in Singapore did not improve, the authorities “may have no choice but to ban their usage completely from Singapore”.
We could hear Singaporeans rejoicing left and right. Even aunties got up from the reserved seat on the MRTs to show their support.
But hold up aunties, don’t celebrate just yet:
Minister Says PMD Ban Not Needed Now & Most Users Are ‘Responsible’
I was about to quit my job at Goody Feed in celebration. But then.. another announcement was made.
Dr Janil said that, “A ban on personal mobility devices is not immediately necessary” and we shouldn’t make an impulsive decision just because of a few rotten apples.
In an interview with CNA, Dr Janil said, “The vast majority of PMD users are indeed responsible, and I think we shouldn’t straightaway have a knee-jerk reaction because of a small number of people who have behaved badly”.
He also added that PMDs are useful if used responsibly and that the majority of footpath users are pedestrians who need to be assured they can use the footpaths safely.
The line that sealed the deal on the issue was, “We don’t particularly think a ban is what we need to do right now, but it’s part of our consideration and it’s something that we have as a tool, if it becomes necessary.”
So banning PMDs altogether is seen as a last resort. To be honest, it sounds like it probably will not happen unless something exceptionally drastic happens. (As if it hasn’t already)
Transport Ministry Will “Do What It Takes” To Keep Footpaths Safe
The fear and horror that came with the death of a 65-year-old lady after she collided with a PMD rider just two weeks ago alarmed Singaporeans everywhere.
This possibly why the Transport Ministry is scrambling to get everyone to put their pitchforks down.
Just a few days ago, a 3-year-old girl was knocked down by a PMD in a shocking footage at an HDB void deck, which served to aggravate the matter.
However, no fear because the Transport Ministry is here.
He revealed that the Government is slowly implementing a few initiatives like making it compulsory to register PMDs and giving incentives for the disposal of PMDs that do not meet the UL2272 fire-safety standard.
Other measures such as building a separate path for PMDs, cyclists and pedestrians may take some time.
Thus far, I feel compelled to look behind me every time I’m walking on pedestrian footpaths. Looks like there’ll be no foreseeable end to this.
Here’s a simplified summary of the South Korea martial law that even a 5-year-old would understand:
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