Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Backing the wrong Green

Seriously, Malaysia changed the law for Electric Bikes in the Peninsular States overnight where they are mulling registration and licensing for the Electric Bike in the kingdom. To avoid some confusion, these are related to EN15194 EU Standards with laws read under the current Road Traffic Acts in UK and Singapore as a reference and press releases by the Department of Land Transport Malaysia (Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan) and not the Ministry of Transport.

Under the Malaysian definition, a Electric Bicycle is a bicycle with a pedal and motor powered using batteries not to exceed 250W (Approx 0.33BHp) of power and speed not to exceed 25KM/H. This is the same guideline and legal requirement for LTA Approved Bicycles in Singapore, where there MUST NOT HAVE A FOOT REST and / or A THROTTLE. If there is a foot rest or Throttle, the Traffic Police  will deem this as a Motorcycle or Motorised Cycle. The Bicycle must also not carry a load of exceeding 18KG (Did not know that either!)! It must also have headlights and rear reflectors, cycle only on the LEFT of the Road and the rider MUST BE AT LEAST 16 Years old and WEAR A HELMET (not specified of type but leeway of using a bicycle EC Approved helmet is acceptable by UK Standards). These are read with the Singapore Road Traffic (Power-Assisted Bicycles — Approval) Rules 2004 which do specify 200W as power of the motor.

The Malaysian law amendment proposal does not require you to register your cycle if it meets the criterion. The British Law (DVLA DOT) read this as the new regulatory Moped Amendment Laws which requires the Q or AM entitlement on their driving license. It's darn expensive BTW and cumbersome to get one. Older entitlements are amended with A1(Tricycle) to allow the Motability Cycles or Scooters to be on the road. In the olden days, a Moped is a bicycle with a 50cc grass cutter engine attached.

However, if your cycle is NOT meeting the above, meaning it does not have a pedal or it's totally battery powered or the speed exceed 25KM/H...then it is classed as a MOTOR CYCLE.  The image below from the Star Dated 14 Nov is a classic example of a clear cut violation.

Disallowed in Singapore, (C) The Star 14/11/12 and a real nuisance.

Singapore does not allow this type of cycle in Singapore so it is also banned in Malaysia as per the Road Traffic Acts (Federation of Malaya Act 1957). The image above is a real clear cut violation as there is no protective shield in front, no headlamps, no proper motorcycle helmet and this is not EN19154 approved despite this imported from New Zealand. This Ang Moh is surely courting death with the roads in Malaysia IMHO.

So the Malaysian Government is not wrong banning the Electric Bikes but the wording is twisted and turned as usual. If you use a Singapore LTA SEALED CYCLE, then you are not in the wrong as it's APPROVED for ROAD USE.

For a Guide:

Electric Bicycle  ( APPROVED Power-Assisted Bicycles )
Pedals and Must be moved by CYCLING.
No Throttle. EN19154
Must have headlights.
Must Wear Helmets.
Rider must be over 16
Power not to exceed 250W in Malaysia (200W in Singapore)
NO NEED LICENSE. If riding into Singapore, require LTA Approval Seal. (Seal # Displayed on Plates)

INCLUDES Mobility Scooters.


Electric BIKE (Electric Motorcycle)
ILLEGAL IN SINGAPORE!!!
Power & Battery Pack not to exceed 11KW.
Require A B2 Driving License in Malaysia.
Cannot exceed 50KM/H
Require a registration license and Plates.
As per regulations of a Motor Cycles
Require Road Tax and INSURANCE.

This is not the law but guide for your use of E-Bikes.

Sources: DVLA UK; Dept of Transport UK; Singapore AGC ; Land Transport Authority (E-Bike); OneMotoring; Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan Malaysia JPJ


9 comments:

  1. The bike you have subjectively written about, is restricted to 23kph, even during downhill travel, has built in anti-skid braking, has front and rear lights, and signal indicators. The YikeBike IS approved by JPJ for use on the roads, under the same rules as a bicycle. I feel you need to do more research before slandering the Time Magazine invention of the year, the Guinness World Record Smallest Electric Bike, the Global Sustainability Award Winner, and the Gadget design winner for three years running. Making up rules based on foreign policy is typical of governments to just follow like sheep and make the same mistakes as their neighbour. No wonder mankind's progression seems to be devolving.. people aren't even willing to look at the positive way forward... getting more people out of their cars so we can clean up and speed up our city commuting. With all due respect to all the new laws, I can travel on my pedal road bike in excess of 60kph, so the whole things doesn't save anybody or make the world a safer place. Thanks.

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  2. Yes you are right (for the commenter not the publsiher)..that is a yike bike and limited to 25kmh and is approved to ride on the left side of the road with no problems in Malaysia. Likewise..i can ride almost 70kph on my racing bicycle...so want to classify it as a motorcycle when my legs are the engine? Do some research first before publishing ur facts which i think they are only ur two cents which are not worth publishing..Thanks but no thank you to ur explanation.

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  3. Thanks man, I'm a foreigner here and wanted to buy an electric bicycle, now I know which one to buy.

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  4. The bike in the photo looks amazing! Where can I buy one?

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  5. FUN, FUN, FUN!!!! Awesome way to spend a couple hours with friends. We got three bikes and rode down around the harbor, then came through downtown. Perfect day. electric bikes nz

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  6. what about electric scooter?
    where can i find all these statements?

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  7. Numo Cruiser LX Designed for electrical enthusiasts and commuters, the Cruiser LX electrical Scooter could be a new generation PEV (personal electrical vehicle). The Numo Cruiser answers the faultss of today's electrical scooters and sets new standards for scooter performance. If you want to read more on electric scooters then please visit our website. Here is our website link: https://getelectricscooter.com/

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  8. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  9. I'm not very good at technical or mechanical. But I also thank the blog owner for sharing this knowledge with the community. In addition to electric scooters, I also love to move by self balance scooter. Thanks to the owner of this blog for sharing useful information.

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