Just at the bus stop outside Thong Teck Building, I had to skip bus 190 for 13 times before being finally able to board it at the 14th bus...1 hr 40 mins later on Friday, 4 Oct (Children's Day).
According to a passenger I talked to, this is common, and it gets worse during weekends and holidays.
As Singapore gets more and more overcrowded, this inconvenience will be inevitable, more dangerous (watch the whole thing to see why) and become the new normal of the future (actually now)...pretty detrimental to our overall economic and mental productivity.
Find out at the end, whether you agree or not...
*To those asking why not I take an alternative mode of transport & yadda dadada, here are my reasons:
The purpose of the video is not just about me per se. It's to show how inconvenient it is to take the bus of your choice.
If I were to go off like that (which I could), would any of you even know this incident is a common affair? Would anyone understand what it was like for the commuters who stuck through with me (esp. the Aunty in orange t-shirt) to know how frustrating this is?
Bus 190 has long been a problematic, crowded bus and it's time this has to be addressed (long overdue). This also applies to many other buses in Singapore that take the popular routes.
Also, consider those who are disabled, the elderly and those with children. Switching buses or MRT stations can be an inconvenience for these ppl, sometimes very impossible. With a direct bus to their homes (most commuters at this bus stop live in CCK and Bukit Panjang), it's a regular choice they make. Can you imagine how much an agony this is for them to go through daily?
DON'T FORGET:
Anyone who has filmed with a smartphone typically do not calibrate their smartphone lens to the exact focal point of their eyes, so perspective distortion does occur where by the distances between objects appear bigger than in real life (that's why ppl like u think I did not bother to queue or go up the bus), not forgetting the free moving angle of my arm that was holding the phone. Also, I had to pause filming every time i tried to board the bus (not captured on video).
Did I wave for a taxi during that time? Oh yes, I did indeed (not shown in video as focus was on the bus instead), and that wasn't easy since many of them had the 'Busy' sign on (it's a Friday after all).
The right questions you should ask are:
- Why should the incident even be allowed in the first place?
- Why can't people have the right to their first choice of transport mode?
- Why can't commuters have the right to a comfortable and spacious transport if they don't want to board an overcrowded bus which is suffocating and dangerous?
- How about people like parents with children, the elderly and the disabled who cannot afford to go through the agony of changing multiple stations just to get to their destinations (which is also more expensive)?
- If we just sweep problems under the carpet or use imperfection as an excuse, we will start to grow comfortable in incompetence and never improve. How can we even progress as a society if we allow this to fester?
- What rights do we have to call ourselves a First World country if we can't address such a problem like this?
Crumbling are the days in Singapore where taking transport is a straight-forward routine.
*Tip for SMRT: In London, commuters are allowed to enter at the exit doors and tap their cards there. It's an overcrowded city too but I never had to wait 14 times when I visited that place. Pls consider this option for us commuters.
BECAUSE of this viral video, Bukit Panjang residents were finally given bus 972 to ease the load. A smack in the face to self-proclaimed Smart Alecks who think that the best way to "not waste time" is to shake leg and do nothing. www.straitstimes.com/singapore...