'Blatant disregard of rules': Video of cyclists ignoring red traffic light at West Coast Highway sparks criticism

Going cycling with friends is supposed to be a harmless and fun activity.

But one group of cyclists ended up infuriating netizens online for seemingly not obeying safe cycling guidelines.

Facebook group SG Road Vigilante posted a video on Thursday (Aug 1) showing a group of roughly 30 cyclists that had apparently failed to conform to guidelines for safe cycling on the road.

According to the Facebook group, the incident occurred at West Cost Highway, in the early morning of Aug 1.

Dashcam footage from a vehicle pausing at a red light showed a pedestrian crossing the road alone. There did not seem to be heavy traffic at the time.

A pair of cyclists did not conform to the red light signal and whizzed past him.

They were then followed by a contingent of cyclists, some braking and navigating their way around the pedestrian.

There did not seem to be any contact between the cyclists and the pedestrian.

Prior to this, a number of cyclists were spotted travelling down the second lane, tailgating a lorry in the process.

The comments section were filled with netizens upset by the cyclists' actions.

"Blatant disregard of rules. Never seen so many beating a red light at once. Really shocking to see," a netizen wrote.

One user who commented on the YouTube video asked: "Are cyclists immune to red lights? Because I hardly see any cyclist stopping at the red light anymore."

Another noted that seeing large groups of cyclists on the road is a relatively common sight on Saturday mornings at Pasir Ris. 

Cycle safely

According to the Land Transport Authority's rules and guidelines for safe cycling on roads, road safety is a shared responsibility.

Cyclists must cycle in a single file on single-lane roads and always ride as close as practicable to the far left edge of roads.

When riding in groups, riders are reminded to keep to a maximum length of five mobility devices, which means a maximum of five cyclists if riding in single file, or 10 cyclists if riding two abreast.

Cyclists must obey all traffic signals and, under the Road Traffic (Traffic Signs) Rules, failing to conform to a red light signal is an offence which carries a maximum fine of $1,000, a jail term of up to three months, or both.

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amierul@asiaone.com