Policies
Our vision of a car-lite nation, with amenities to support walking and cycling, must also be accompanied by a culture of graciousness and consideration for others.
Set up in 2015, the Active Mobility Advisory Panel (AMAP), which comprises representatives from key stakeholder groups, guides the safe use of active mobility devices, which include bicycles, power-assisted bicycles (PABs), personal mobility devices (PMDs) and personal mobility aids (PMAs) by reviewing regulations and making recommendations on keeping roads and paths safe for all users.
The panel plays an active role in engaging various stakeholders in studying ways to improve the active mobility landscape, and to involve the community as a key partner in this journey. Over the years, AMAP played a key role in the formulation of the Active Mobility Act, which stipulates device requirements and usage rules for active mobility devices.
Other key recommendations that the AMAP put forth are speed limits for active mobility devices on paths, mandatory third-party liability insurance for businesses, and minimum brake requirements for bicycles. AMAP released recommendations to improve on-road safety which took effect 1 January 2022.
Effective since May 2018, the Active Mobility Act (AMA) provides a set of rules and code of conduct for safe sharing of public paths and roads among the users of:
- Bicycles
- Power-Assisted Bicycles (PABs)
- Motorised and Non-motorised Personal Mobility Devices (PMDs), e.g. kick scooters, electric scooters, hoverboards, unicycles etc.
- Personal Mobility Aids (PMAs), e.g. wheelchairs, motorised wheelchairs or mobility scooters designed to carry an individual who has difficulty walking
Find out more about the offences and penalties, and refer to this useful checklist on the rules and guidelines for safe walking and riding on public paths, as well as for cycling on roads.
Regulations are in place to ensure that the device is safe for use in public, such as the maximum device weight and maximum speed for the various devices as well as where these devices can be used. Power-assisted bicycles and e-scooters also have to adhere to prescribed technical standards and have to be registered with LTA.
Launched on 30 Jun 2021 for e-scooter and PAB riders, the test is intended to ensure that motorised device riders are aware of active mobility rules, code of conduct and safe riding practices. The test, which is available in four languages, can be taken online with special provisions available on a case-by-case basis for those who are not digitally savvy or literate. From 1 Jan 2022, all riders must have passed the test before they are allowed to ride their devices on cycling paths and roads (applicable to PABs only).
It is mandatory for operators that provide motorised devices for sharing or which employ workers who use such devices for work to take reasonable and practicable measures to ensure that their riders are adequately covered by third-party liability insurance. Non-commercial riders are strongly encouraged to purchase third-party liability insurance to protect themselves from personal accident expenses and third-party injury claims.
Commuters can bring their active mobility devices onto trains and buses, as long as the device size does not exceed 120cm x 70cm x 40cm (There are size checkers with measurements at most bus interchanges and train stations to help commuters gauge if their device is within the size limit).
