SINGAPORE: Bike-sharing company ofo has submitted a licence application to the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to cover its fleet of 80,000 bicycles.
"Today's submission is a testament to our commitment to Singapore and part of our ongoing effort to ensure that our riders can get to their destinations with ease," said ofo Singapore general manager Yan Fun Heng in a media release on Friday (Jun 29).
Advertisement"The company remains confident in the bike-sharing industry in Singapore and will continue working with our partners to positively contribute to the Singapore government's vision of a car-lite nation," he added.
The LTA has set a Jul 7 deadline for bike-sharing firms to either apply for a licence to operate in public places or cease operations.
Those who submit them will have their applications evaluated and licence awarded by September.
The new requirement by LTA follows the passage in May of the Parking Places (Amendment) Bill, a piece of legislation aimed at tackling the indiscriminate parking of shared bicycles.
AdvertisementAdvertisementUnlicensed operators may be fined up to S$10,000 and/or jailed up to six months. They may also face a fine of S$500 for each day the offence continues.
ofo, along with Mobike, SG Bike, Anywheel and oBike had confirmed with Channel NewsAsia last week that they would be submitting their applications before the LTA deadline.
In a surprise announcement on Monday, however, oBike said that it would shut down its operations in Singapore from Jun 25, citing difficulties in meeting the new LTA requirements.
The LTA has since instructed oBike to work with its liquidator to remove its bicycles from public spaces by Jul 4, amid concerns that its fleet of about 14,000 bicycles is being left abandoned on streets, pavements and parks all over the country..
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