On 25 June, a large group of cyclists were seen on Telok Blangah Road at night.
Now, it’s good that people are exercising and socialising, but the bigger problem was that their massive group was hogging up the bus lane and potentially bringing danger to themselves and the motorists on the road.
The Mega Mass Ride on Bus Lane
Based on a video posted in the Facebook group SG Road Vigilante—no surprise here—the whole gang of cyclists were spotted cycling on Telok Blangah Road.
Supposedly, they were part of the “Mega Mass Ride”, which is a cycling endurance event in Singapore.
At least 40 cyclists were spotted.
The Problem with Too Many Cyclists
In accordance with the traffic rules laid out by the Land Transport Authority (LTA), on-road cyclists are only allowed to cycle in single file, especially if it’s during bus lane operation hours.
Even outside of bus lane operation hours, there are still on-road cycling rules to abide by.
For instance, only a maximum of five cyclists are allowed in a group if they’re riding single-file, or there can be 10 cyclists if the group is riding two abreast.
These regulations have been in effect since January 2022.
Therefore, when there are four times the amount of allowed cyclists, such that they threaten to overspill to the next lane, it becomes a serious problem.
During one instance in the video, the bus was forced to come to a halt and wait for the cyclists to pass, despite signalling that it was going to exit from the bus lane.
Its driving speed was also slowed down because of the trail of cyclists in front, since they were taking up the entire lane.
Later, another bus also had to wait for the group to pass before turning out of the bus stop.
In an even more precarious situation, one cyclist was seen narrowly swerving around a ComfortDelGro taxi.
Even though the bike was behind the taxi initially, and the driver had signalled that they were going to take a left turn into the zebra crossing, it was forced to brake to give way and avoid the cyclist.
All in all, it was quite dangerous.
The Netizens’ Response
As of writing this article, the Facebook video has over 26,000 views and 200 comments.
There were quite a few netizens swearing at the cyclists creatively for their irresponsible behaviour.
Others sighed and shook their heads at the blatant flouting of the traffic laws, with some even pointing at the cyclist who touched the first bus.
One Facebook user gave more insight to the situation as they were at one of the bus stops.
He wrote that he was waiting at the bus stop near Vivo when he witnessed the parade of cyclists. Not only did they not give way to the bus, but they also shouted vulgarities after the bus captain tooted the horn at them.
He ended his comment with, “Authorities should look into it along this road every weekend.”
Another netizen was rendered speechless by the cyclists’ conduct as they wrote, “These [cyclists] are above the law, please stop your vehicle, alight and kowtow to them.”
There were naturally quite a few netizens that were tagging the LTA aggressively, and others who remarked that these cyclists probably won’t learn their lesson on how dangerous it is to obstruct the traffic until someone gets fined or an accident happens.
Truth to be told, there are better places to cycle than the roads, like the park connectors, which specifically have built-in bike trails.
Ascent Bikes: We Are Not Associated To MMR
If you watch till the end of the video, you will be greeted with this screen:
Given the vitriol that the group of cyclists have received, Ascent Bikes—a local bike shop—was quick to refute on their Instagram account that the “Mega Mass Ride” in the video was done without their consent.
The shop also added that they weren’t involved in the planning of the Mega Mass Ride event, as much as they “appreciated the sense of community engendered in group rides”.
Ascent Bikes all but denounced any involvement with the incident, listing that they didn’t participate in any of the planning, publicity, logistics, the ride itself, or provide any support.
In the third and fourth pointers, they emphasised their stance on abiding the traffic laws, which includes the usage of lights and helmets, and respecting the group riding limits.
They sincerely hope that “interactions between cyclists and other road users will stem from mutual respect and care”.
Featured Images: Facebook (SG Road Vigilante)