In March, foldable bicycles will be allowed on board trains and buses during off-peak periods under a six-month trial. There will also be more and better bike parking, and cyclists will be able to access public transport via park connectors.
Chu Wa has been cycling to work for ages (read his well commented blog post here) and has always brought his foldable bike up the MRT as suggested by their CEO years ago. The bus bit though, is entirely new and pleasant news.
Let's hope it will be a positive six months.
Excerpt from the "Speech by Mr Raymond Lim, Minister for Transport, at the visit to Kim Chuan Depot, 25 January 2008, 9.00am." Singapore Government Media Release.
Facilitating Cyclists
44 Cyclists are another group that we will facilitate. There is a growing interest in cycling, with more people cycling for recreation, or to get around the neighbourhood.
45 We invited some of them to our land transport review focus group discussions to see how we could better cater to their needs. Some cyclists asked for more bicycle stands around our bus and MRT stations. Others made the point that some foldable bicycles were not much bigger than prams, so why not allow them onboard our trains and buses?
46 Responding to this, LTA together with the public transport operators will launch a six-month trial from March 2008 to allow cyclists to carry their foldable bicycles on board trains and buses. LTA will also work with NParks and other agencies to leverage on the park connectors to enable cyclists to get to public transport interchanges more easily. Bicycle parking facilities at the MRT stations and bus interchanges in housing estates will be improved.
47 The cyclists also shared their ‘war stories’ and asked us to help improve safety on our roads. Following a pilot in Changi, LTA will put up signs to alert motorists to the presence of cyclists along frequently used cycling routes such as those in West Coast and Thomson from March 08. LTA and the Traffic Police have also started a trial to allow cycling on pedestrian footways in Tampines.
48 But at the end of the day, it is also an issue of mutual accommodation – for the motorists to look out for cyclists on the road; and for cyclists to have a care for pedestrians.
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