SINGAPORE – In the month since the e-scooters were banned on footpaths on Nov 5, a total of 3,444 warnings were issued to riders, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said on Thursday (Dec 5).

The authority also impounded 111 personal mobility devices (PMDs) in relation to other offences such as illegal modifications of e-scooters.

“Errant e-scooter riders have been charged and sentenced in court,” the LTA said in a Facebook post, using the hashtag #WeMeanBusiness.

Until the end of the year, riders caught riding their PMDs on footpaths will be issued with warnings.

But from next year, those caught can be fined up to $2,000, jailed for up to three months, or both.

The stricter regulations came after a series of PMD-related accidents here, in which pedestrians were injured and a 65-year-old cyclist killed.

E-scooters can still be used on the 440km of network cycling paths, which the Government plans to triple by 2030.

LTA officers outside Braddell MRT station on Tuesday giving out advisories to PMD users who flouted the ban told The Straits Times they have been carrying out regular patrols from 8.30am to 9.30am every day at different locations.

LTA said its regular enforcement operations span the island, with officers stationed in places including Yew Tee, Tanjong Pagar, Holland, Punggul, Jalan Besar and Ang Mo Kio.

One e-scooter rider ST spotted flouting the ban in Braddell on Tuesday said he will continue to take advantage of the advisory period.

The 29-year-old self-employed man, who did not want to be named, said: “I’m only riding a few hundred metres. I’ll use my car once the enforcement properly kicks in next year.”

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