Remember when our biggest worry was crashing into a speeding PMD on the streets?
It was a simpler time, where we could shake hands with our colleagues and bathe once a week.
Reader: You mean you’re only bathing every day because of the Covid-19 outbreak?
Some things are better left unknown, dear reader.
With Covid-19 dominating the headlines for the past three months, many have forgotten about what used to be the bane of our existence: PMDs.
Well, they’re making a comeback, and this time they’re more daring than ever.
Youth Sped at 45 kmh With PMDs in CTE As There Are Fewer Cars on The Road During Circuit Breaker Period
While many people have been staying indoors like they were told to, a group of youngsters took this opportunity to ride their personal mobility devices in the Central Expressway tunnel during the start of the Covid-19 circuit breaker period.
A video taken by one of the speeding riders was uploaded online.
According to Mothership, there were at least three of them and they were either riding along Kampong Java Tunnel or Chin Swee Tunnel.
The rider who took the video panned to his speedometer during the joyride, which showed that he was travelling at over 45km/h.
With almost everyone indoors, the roads are as empty as a PMD rider’s head, and these young riders clearly took advantage of this.
PMD Riders Not Allowed On Roads
It seems like a lifetime since the circuit breaker period started, and three lifetimes since PMDs were banned on footpaths.
But it was banned on roads long before that.
Under the Road Traffic Act, it is illegal for PMDs – such as e-scooters and hoverboards – to be used on roads since 15 Jan 2018, with first-time offenders subject to a fine of up to S$2,000, a jail term of up to three months, or both.
PMD riders risk having their devices impounded if they are caught riding illegally on roads and expressways.
E-scooters can now only be used on cycling paths nationwide.
Stay At Home, Lah
I know that when you’re a teenager, your brain tells you to go against authority and do stupid things, but this is not the time to act on those impulses.
Firstly, we’re not allowed to gather in groups outdoors during the circuit breaker, even if it’s for exercise.
Plus, you might think that you’re young and immune to the dangers of Covid-19, but reports of young people dying contradict that belief.
And even if we don’t get ill from the virus, we can spread it to the elderly, who are more vulnerable to the disease.
So please, stay at home. If you want to go viral on social media, try training your raccoon to wash its hands. That’s much safer.
In the meantime, if you’re really bored, you might want to download the Goody Feed app to read news about COVID-19 written in a light-hearted and easy-to-understand style (yet still informative), because if you depend on Facebook, you’d just be reading all the grimy news.