Parliament has turned its iron sights to errant riders who ditch their shared bicycles in improper places — the Land Transport Authority (LTA) seeks to impose geo-fencing tech for users to scan a QR code at designated parking spaces as proof of proper parking.
The Parking Places (Amendment) Bill was tabled in Parliament today, involving a new regulatory framework for bike-sharing operators to address the problem of rampant indiscriminate parking of their two-wheelers.
LTA noted that the issue of negligent parking of shared bicycles continue to cause “significant social disamenities”, despite its efforts to increase parking infrastructure and encourage bike-sharing operators to operate responsibly.
Here are the proposed amendments made by the Ministry of Transport today:
- Regular reviews of maximum fleet sizes of each bike-sharing operator. Companies that are able to manage indiscriminate parking will be allowed to have their fleets grow over time.
- A “QR code-enabled geo-fencing solution” that involves operators requiring their users to scan the unique QR code at the designated parking location as proof of proper parking before they can end their trip. Those who fail to do so will be continuously charged for the trip.
- Operators who don’t comply with LTA’s standards and conditions will face heavy penalties, such as fines of up to S$100,000, reductions in fleet size, suspension, or even the cancellation of their licenses.
- LTA will have the power to get operators to ban users who repeatedly park their shared bikes indiscriminately.
- Bike-sharing operators who continue to operate without licenses are liable to a fine of up to S$10,000 and/or a jail term of up to six months.
Harsh decrees, but probably needed in the face of continual issues involving shared bicycles. If Singaporeans were a gracious society from the start, such heavy-handed governmental measures and social initiatives like Volunteer Bike Patrol wouldn’t have to exist.
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