Making it safe to cycle in Singapore

Finally government initiatives showing commitment to safe cycling in Singapore!

A new committee will be set up to re-examine ways to make Singapore's roads safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

Parliamentary Secretary for Transport Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim told Parliament on Wednesday that he will convene the inter-agency panel, called the Committee on Pedestrian and Cyclist Safety. It will comprise members from the Land Transport Authority, the Traffic Police and the Education Ministry.

Dr Faishal, who will chair the panel, said he will canvass the views of local communities and people in the public and private sectors before rolling out a five year plan. The committee will prioritise the safety of the elderly and school children.

First on the committee's to-do list will be safety within school zones. Besides tougher enforcement by the Traffic Police, the panel is looking into reducing speed limits around schools and providing additional measures like speed humps, flashing LED lights, more signs, and installing railings at both sides of the road in school zones.

Dr Faishal also said the authorities may test out the effectiveness of some of these measures in selected locations and put more pairs of eyes on the road to spot and stop illegal parking.

After a successful trial at Beach Road and Marine Parade Central, he said more surveillance cameras will be installed in more locations islandwide.

Source: ST
Well the good news doesn't stop there! More cycling paths!

The Government will add another 90km of off-road cycling paths to several Housing Board towns here.

This will bring the total to 210km of cycling paths in 16 towns here, said Parliamentary Secretary for Transport Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim in Parliament on Wednesday. The eventual goal is for every HDB town to have a comprehensive cycling network. Dr Faishal added that he had asked the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to plug short gaps in the cycling path network. There are opportunities to connect existing park connectors to MRT stations nearby, for instance at Sengkang, he said.

To improve cycling safety, the LTA will work with the Safe Cycling Task Force to put up more signs on popular cycling routes. It will also launch a guidebook on safe cycling tips in a few months' time. As for on-road cycling, Dr Faishal noted that traffic is heavy on Singapore roads. He also said on-road cycling lanes would affect the movement of buses, require the removal of street-side parking and exposing cyclists to turning traffic if the lanes are not properly designed. Still, he said the LTA is identifying roads where these issues can be overcome, and is studying the feasibility of trying out on-road cycling lanes in those areas. 

Source: ST 

Also heard that another 600 new bicycle racks to be built at 12 more MRT stations by third quarter of 2014. So more cycle/train options in the morning commute.

Only hope they ease up on the foldable bike hours on the train, then I can start to bring my Ferrari foldable bike out!