The cyclist-motorist conflict - It's time the LTA did something

A paralysis of indecision happens when someone cannot decide between two or more courses of action that will independently lead to conflicting outcomes. We have seen how this can affect regulatory agencies such as the HSA, when trying to decide between pleasing the biomedical industry and protecting public interests A proper balance between conflicting outcomes may be difficult to strike. The indecisive will often just sit on their hands, and hope the problem will blow away, or at the very least stay away until the decision maker can escape to another, usually higher appointment.

The problems between cyclists and motorists have been brewing for a very long time. It's not as if the LTA has not been aware of it. Gigamole had posted before on this conflict almost exactly 2 years ago. Yet no action had been taken since then. Recently, this has blown up again because of some tragic and unnecessary accidents between cyclists and motorists. 

An increasing cyclist lobby are rightfully clamouring for more space, more consideration and more safety. On the other hand motorists say cyclists are often irresponsible on the roads, that motorists feel they have more rights to, as they pay road taxes while cyclists do not. Truth be told, both parties do engage in risky, irresponsible behaviour. Who is right?

It is during times like this that the LTA need to step in and openly declare the appropriate boundaries, physical as well as behavioural. It is in this situation that the LTA has been neglectful, and in my mind irresponsibly indecisive. I can appreciate their dilemma. On one hand they do not want to restrict the behaviour and recreational choices of the growing cycling population. Yet the road system is far from adequate to accommodate both cyclist and motorist needs. Motoring traffic is congested enough as it is already. S what does LTA do....? It appears they just want to sit on their hands and hope the problem will be delayed to the next cohort of managers.

So here is Gigamole pleading again with the LTA.... please do something about this. Before more unnecessary deaths occur. Make the rules clear to both the cycling and motoring populations, and be committed to enforce them until such time as behavioural norms can be established.

The cyclist vs motorist debate..... why is the LTA silent?

Yesterday's ST carried a surprising and gracious letter from a Mr Damian Evans....apologizing for some bad behaviour as a cyclist. Surprising because apologizing is not something we have come to expect in Singapore society.

Today's ST then followed with a letter from a motorist who was responsible for the incident.

It was an interesting exchange of views, which highlighted one thing for me. Neither was out to cause grief. Yet their encounter on the road resulted in a potential for conflict....or worse, for physical danger to one of them.

A major reason for this I belief is the lack of clarity of what is expected of cyclists' behaviour on the roads. Motorists are generally confused by signals being sent about how cyclists should cycle..... or not cycle. I know cyclist s who firmly believe that when they are on the roads they should cycle in the middle of the left most lane. They believe that this increases their profile and reduces their risk of being forced to the kerb or being hit by a car. To me this is foolhardiness, but this is what they believe. If cycling in a group, I have heard of cyclists being told by their group leaders that they should cycle abreast for the same reason.

Yet this is blatant violation of the law, which is explicit in forbidding cyclists from cycling abreast.

In all this time, the Traffic Police and LTA have been pitifully and disappointingly silent. Should they not come out and say clearly what is allowed and what is not? What is allowable and what not? Why are they so coy about this?

Clarity preempts conflict.... and hopefully will prevent unnecessary accidents.

When they do break their silence, they should also be explicit about what stretches of roads are out of bounds to cyclists....e.g. expressways, semi-expressways, overhead passes etc.