Cyclists accorded right to be on roads

I am astounded to learn of people blaming cyclists for being on the roads when they do not pay road tax ("Drivers pay for road use, not cyclists" by Mr Chek Cheuy Sing; March 29).

In 2013, the Land Transport Authority made the following clarification: "Public roads are intended to be used by all road users, including cyclists and pedestrians.

They are built and maintained using public funds collected from general taxes, including those who do not use motorised vehicles.

All road users should use the roads responsibly with consideration for other road users."

The road tax that motorists pay are based on emissions, and as bicycles do not have any carbon footprint, cyclists do not pay road taxes.

Thus, all motorists should understand that cyclists have the same rights to be on the roads, albeit with restrictions such as being unable to cycle on expressways.

As a motorist and cyclist myself, I have personally come across incidents where motorists force cyclists out of the way on the roads, as well as cyclists breaking the law while on the roads.

While the majority of cyclists on the roads just want to get from point A to B safely, a small minority prefer to race from point A to B while breaking traffic laws.

I am sure this applies to motorists too.

We should be more gracious to one another on the roads. Cyclists must understand and respect traffic laws, while motorists must accept that cyclists form part of the traffic and should be treated as any other road user.

Let's work together to make Singapore roads safer for all.

This article was first published on Apr 12, 2015.
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