Educating Cyclists on Section 11A of Road Traffic (Bicycles) Rules and Enforcement Efforts to Improve Road Safety
Ministry of Home AffairsSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the education and enforcement of Section 11A of the Road Traffic (Bicycles) Rules, which mandates that bicycles display lights on roads between 7 pm and 7 am. Ms Raeesah Khan inquired about measures to educate cyclists on these requirements and the enforcement efforts taken to improve road safety for motorists and cyclists. Minister for Home Affairs Mr K Shanmugam responded that the Traffic Police (TP) conduct public education through the "Use Your RoadSense" campaign and community partnerships to encourage pre-riding device checks. He added that TP carries out enforcement operations at high-traffic locations, penalizing cyclists who fail to display the required front and rear lights. Penalties for non-compliance range from fines of up to $1,000 and three months' imprisonment for first-time offenders to higher sanctions for repeat violators.
Transcript
4 Ms Raeesah Khan asked the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how does the Ministry currently educate cyclists on Section 11A of the Road Traffic (Bicycles) Rules which mandates lights on bicycles on roads between 7 pm and 7 am the following day; and (b) whether there are any enforcement efforts in relation to this to improve road safety for both motorists and cyclists.
Mr K Shanmugam: The Traffic Police (TP) conducts public education to raise awareness on safe cycling. For example, TP's "Use Your RoadSense" campaign encourages cyclists to conduct pre-riding device checks. These checks include ensuring that the front and rear lights of the bicycle are operational. TP also partners the Singapore Road Safety Council, Safe Cycling Taskforce, Singapore Cycling Federation, and People's Association to raise awareness on safe cycling practices among the cycling community, including wearing reflective gear at night and ensuring that lights and reflectors on bicycles are installed in proper positions.
TP conducts enforcement operations at locations such as traffic junctions near the Park Connector Network, where there is a higher concentration of cyclists who are prone to commit traffic offences such as cycling in a disorderly manner or against the flow of traffic. In these operations, enforcement action is also taken against cyclists who commit the offence of failing to display lights at the front and rear of their bicycles when cycling on roads between 7 pm and 7 am. First-time offenders may be fined up to $1,000, imprisoned for up to three months, or both. Repeat offenders may be fined up to $2,000, imprisoned for up to six months, or both.