A man is suing the PUB, the national water agency, after getting injured in January of last year when the wheel of his bicycle was caught in the grating of a drain.
Maung Maung Aung Soe Thu, 42, a citizen of Myanmar, is seeking at least $578,000 in damages in a negligence lawsuit.
He claims that the PUB breached the duty of care because it failed to make sure the safety of drain gratings in the road are safe.
However, the water agency denies this, saying that the probability of a person riding a bike would suffer a moderate to serious injury from an accident involving a drain grating is only 0.00001 per cent.
The High Court hearing determining the liability issue began on Tuesday (Sept 6) and is expected to last three days.
Should the national agency be found liable, there will be another hearing for assessing the quantum of damages.
On Jan 16, 2021, Mr Maung Maung, a senior engineering assistant, had been at Changi Point Coastal Walk, cycling with a friend.
He did not see a 3cm gap in the drain grating as he was watching for traffic, he told the court on Sept 6.
At that time, the drain was covered in fallen leaves.
The accident resulted in head and spine injuries, facial bone fractures and multiple face and lip abrasions, and he now walks with a limp with the help of a cane.
Lawyers for PUB said Mr Maung Maung had also been negligent as he had chosen to ride his bike on the road instead of at the park connector.
Netizens had a lot to say about the matter.
One commenter called him “very daring” presumably for filing a lawsuit against the national water agency.
Others joked that they could also bring on similar lawsuits.
A number of commenters underlined the importance of road safety and being careful as a cyclist.
However, one netizen urged the others not to be so judgmental.
Another wrote that there should be a ban on cyclists on certain Singapore roads.
/TISG
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