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SINGAPORE: Bike-sharing operators Anywheel and Moov Technology have been granted in-principle approval for licences to operate dockless bike-sharing services in public places, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said on Wednesday (Apr 3).

The companies were two of three operators that had submitted licence applications during the latest application cycle.



Anywheel had previously been granted a sandbox licence by LTA last year. Following "careful evaluation", LTA said it has now decided to graduate Anywheel to a full bike-sharing operator licence for up to 10,000 bicycles.

Newcomer Moov Technology will be granted a sandbox licence for up to 1,000 bicycles.

The third applicant, Ywise Circle, was not successful in its application as it did not meet the evaluation criteria, said LTA.

"All applications are assessed by LTA based on a set of common set of evaluation criteria which took into consideration factors such as the applicant’s proposal to manage indiscriminate parking, fleet utilisation, its financial strength and track record, if applicable," said the authority in a news release.





Operators who have been granted sandbox and full licences for device-sharing services will be allowed to operate in public places for one year and two years respectively.

They must meet requirements such as implementing a Quick Response (QR) code parking system to ensure users park within designated areas.

"This seeks to ensure that licensees operate responsibly and do not create disamenities in providing their services," said LTA.



Licensed operators can submit applications to expand their fleet sizes twice a year in January and July.

Separately, LTA said it will announce its decision on personal mobility device-sharing licence applications by the middle of this year. Applications opened on Jan 4 this year and closed on Feb 11.



"More time is needed to evaluate this first licence application cycle for PMD-sharing activities, which involve new activities such as the charging of shared devices that are not present in bicycle-sharing services," said the authority.



Issues such as indiscriminate parking and abuse of the bicycles have previously plagued Singapore's bike-sharing industry.



Chinese bike-sharing firm ofo had its licence suspended by LTA on Feb 14, after it failed to comply with regulatory requirements. On Wednesday, LTA announced it has issued the firm with a notice of intention to cancel its licence, as despite an extended deadline to remove its bicycles from public spaces, the firm did not comply.

