Woman filmed riding electric wheelchair on roadway where PMAs are prohibited

SINGAPORE: An elderly woman was spotted travelling against traffic in her electric wheelchair on Qiaonan Road, with footage of the incident drawing attention online.

The elderly woman was wearing a blue coat and sitting in an electric wheelchair. As reported by Shin Min Daily News, she realised that there was a red traffic light ahead and used this opportunity as an advantage to move along the lane towards the intersection, given that there were little to no vehicles coming. 

It was very common in the area for elderly people to ride their electric wheelchairs. “There are many older residents in this area, and sometimes you can see them riding along the roadside, and sometimes they don’t ride across the road at the traffic lights,” a 62-year-old witness admitted. 

The Land Transport Authority has a rule that mobility aids are prohibited from driving on roads and may only be used on public walkways such as sidewalks. The maximum speed while driving these mobility aids is six kilometres per hour. Anyone who violates this will be fined up to $2,000, and/or face three months imprisonment. 

Read more about LTA’s regulations on Personal Mobility Aids (PMAs) here.

In a separate case involving an elderly resident in Singapore, a woman was accused of splashing an unknown liquid and bleach on her neighbour’s door.

She later allegedly sprayed insecticide at her neighbour and the neighbour’s daughter while out on bail, causing both to suffer mild poisoning and require hospital treatment.

Read more about the story here.