Following the passing of the Parking Places (Amendment) Bill in March 2018, LTA will start accepting licence applications for dockless bicycle-sharing service operators on 8 May 2018. Licence applications can be made via LTA’s website at https://www.lta.gov.sg/content/ltaweb/en/walk-cycle-ride.html.

2.     Existing operators that fail to submit an application will be required to cease operations immediately when the application window closes on 7 July 2018. Unlicensed operation of shared devices will be considered an offence and unlicensed operators can be fined of up to $10,000 and/or face a jail term of up to six months; and a continuing fine of $500 per day that the offence continues.

3.     In assessing the applications, LTA will consider, amongst other factors, the ability of the operator to manage indiscriminate parking by its users, its fleet utilisation rate, and other relevant factors such as the demand for the service and availability of parking spaces. Existing operators’ track record of managing indiscriminate parking will also be taken into account during LTA’s evaluation of their applications.

Key aspects of licensing framework

4.     Under the licensing regime, operators who have a licence will be allowed to operate in public spaces for up to two years. There are three key aspects to the licensing framework.

5.     First, LTA will impose conditions on the maximum fleet size that each operator can deploy. Given the scale of the indiscriminate parking problem today, LTA will take a more conservative approach in setting the fleet sizes. However, operators who are able to manage indiscriminate parking and ensure good bicycle utilisation will be allowed to grow their fleets over time.

6.     Second, operators will be subjected to licence conditions and industry-wide standards imposed by LTA. LTA will take regulatory action against operators for breaches of licence conditions and standards, which includes reducing their fleet size, imposing financial penalties of up to $100,000 for each instance of non-compliance, suspension or revocation of licence.

7.     Third, operators will have to take measures to ensure that their users practise responsible parking. This includes requiring their users to scan the unique QR code at the parking location as proof of proper parking before they can end their trip, and continuously charging users who park indiscriminately, until they return the shared bicycle to a designated parking space. Operators will be required to share data with each other on users who park indiscriminately for the purpose of imposing a collective ban on recalcitrant users. An individual user who has been determined to have parked indiscriminately at least 3 times in a calendar year when renting from one or more operators will be banned for up to one year from using all bicycle-sharing services.

8.     All licensees must also provide data to LTA to facilitate enforcement and planning of active mobility infrastructure.