E-scooter shop owner charged for riding PMD on road
The e-scooter shop owner was also riding a PMD that weighed double the legal limit
An e-scooter shop owner was in court yesterday for allegedly riding a personal mobility device (PMD) on a road.
Samuel Tan Woon Yeow, 37, the proprietor of Synergy Scooters, is accused of riding on Lim Chu Kang Road "at a very high speed" on July 6.
Land Transport Authority (LTA) prosecutor Ng Jun Kai said Tan was spotted by a Traffic Police officer on a patrol motorcycle and was nabbed after being stopped along Jalan Bahar at about 12.10am.
Under the Road Traffic Act, PMDs are not allowed to be used on roads and offenders may be fined up to $2,000 and/or jailed for up to three months.
LTA may also impose composition fines. First-time offenders face a $300 fine for riding on local roads, and $500 on major roads. Those caught riding on expressways will be charged in court. Repeat offenders face stiffer penalties. The PMDs will also be impounded during investigations.
In Tan's case, further checks found that his PMD weighed 48.28kg, more than double the legal limit.
Mr Ng said the LTA takes a serious stance on PMD users who do not abide by the law.
He added that the Traffic Police are also investigating Tan's case and he may face additional charges.
Tan told District Judge Lorraine Ho that he does not intend to hire a lawyer and will be meeting a Traffic Police investigation officer today. He is expected to return to court on Sept 5.
Meanwhile, local e-scooter sharing firm Neuron Mobility was slapped with 56 more charges of providing PMD-sharing services at public places without a licence or exemption.
Represented yesterday by its chief executive Zachary Wang Zi Zi, the company was first charged in February with two counts of the same Parking Places Act offence.
Operators are not allowed to offer PMDs for hire in public places without a licence or an exemption by the Minister for Transport.
For example, exemptions have been granted for a specified area in one-north.
Neuron Mobility's alleged offences took place between October last year and February this year.
If it pleads guilty, the prosecution will proceed with 19 of the 58 charges and seek a $3,000 fine for each proceeded charge. The case has also been adjourned to Sept 5.
Illegal PMD-sharing operators can be fined up to $10,000 and/or jailed for up to six months, with a further fine of $500 for each day it continues to operate illegally after the conviction.
It was earlier reported that as of Feb 25, LTA had impounded 144 Neuron Mobility PMDs after they were found to be available for hire at public places. This was despite repeated warnings to the company.
As of Feb 14, LTA had also impounded 68 PMDs from another local firm, Telepod, which was taken to court that month. The New Paper understands it now faces 25 charges under the Parking Places Act.
In May, LTA delayed awarding PMD-sharing licences until the third quarter of this year, citing safety concerns.
There were 13 operators vying for sandbox licences, which allow fleets of only up to 500 e-scooters, but American firm Lime withdrew its application last week.
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