Electric scooters, unicycles, hoverboards … why can’t Singaporeans just walk?
- To fans, personal mobility devices are the future of ‘last-mile’ commuting and the final piece of the jigsaw in a world-class transport system
- To haters, they’re a menace to pedestrians, a fire hazard and about as welcome as the shared bikes that once cluttered the streets
Remember back when walking or cycling were the only options for the last mile of your commute – that final stretch between home and the nearest bus stop or train station?
These gizmos, collectively called personal mobility devices or PMDs, have proliferated in recent years, with their inventors describing them as a silver bullet for last-mile commuting.
But just like the city state’s previous experimental last-mile solution – the shared bicycles that came to clutter the streets – PMDs are proving somewhat controversial.
The government has found itself having to appease both PMD users, who swear the devices are a game changer, and their critics – who say they make pedestrians’ lives hell.
Industry sources say there are about 80,000 active users of these devices in the city state.