‘Fixie’ shop welcomes Singapore’s ban on brakeless bikes

Singapore’s cycling thrillseekers should comply with a new rule that will ban them from riding around town without brakes, the owner of a cycling shop said today.

Responding to news that all bicycles must soon have at least one functioning brake, the owner of a fixed-gear bicycle shop told Coconuts today that though safety has always been a priority for shops like his, customers are another story.

“As a rider and mechanic, definitely we will recommend them to put brakes for safety purposes, but in the end, if customers don’t want to … then it’s their choice, we cannot force them as well,” 34-year-old Ethan Tan of Fixie Singapore said.

Tan doesn’t think sales will be negatively affected as fixie owners will now come to his shop with more maintenance needs.

“I think the business will be better because people need to buy brakes then the more bicycle parts they have, the more maintenance will be needed,” he added.

The Transport Ministry announced today that it had adopted the ban at the recommendation of a safety panel. It means riders of fixed-gear bikes lacking brakes will need to equip them with at least one.

“This measure will further improve the safety of our paths,” the ministry said in a statement. 

More details on implementing the ban will be announced later. 

The latest recommendations come as Singapore reports an increase in incidents involving bicycles without handbrakes. A 13-year-old died in September after riding a fixie bike at a Pasir Ris multi-story parking lot where she fell several levels to her death.

Fixed-gear bicycles, sports bicycles like BMX and stunt bikes, do not have handbrakes and rely on backpedaling to slow down. 

The ban was recommended by the Active Mobility Advisory Panel panel, the same 6-year-old body that came up with the ban on motorized personal mobility devices, or PMDs. 

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