• About Us
    • Fact Checking Policy
    • Ownership & funding information
    • Volunteer
  • Subscribe
  • Letter submission
    • Submissions Policy
  • Contact Us
The Online Citizen Asia
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Singapore
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
    • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Politics
    • Civil Society
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
No Result
View All Result
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Singapore
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
    • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Politics
    • Civil Society
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
No Result
View All Result
The Online Citizen Asia
No Result
View All Result

Bukit Timah bridge incident – commuters left stranded

by onlinecitizen
04/07/2010
in Uncategorized
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0

In light of the recent heated debate about the transport system in Singapore, I would like to share my experience with the bus service along Bukit Timah Road.

This afternoon [03 July], the overhead bridge at Sixth Avenue “collapsed”. The exact time I am unsure, but a cashier at the nearby Guthrie House Cold Storage informed me it was at about 1pm.

I had walked from Adam Road as the entire stretch of Bukit Timah Road until the Clementi Road entrance had been diverted. Despite the fact that bus captains patiently explained to every passenger [about the incident], the shocking fact remains that for about 6 hours, not a single person from the bus service notified the residents of Bukit Timah huddled under the bus stops, waiting futilely for buses to come in the rain.

While walking the few kilometres down, I encountered people who had waited even up to 2 hours. I also noted the presence of large groups of stranded construction workers, appearing to be waiting for some sort of service to send them back to their hostels. They cut very abject figures in the humid drizzle, with nothing to shelter them save their yellow safety helmets.

I think the entire experience casts a huge doubt over our public transport system’s ability to deal with “unforeseen circumstances”.

Although there was crisis management in the form of diverting traffic, the lack of accountability and communication just reeks of irresponsibility and ineptness to me. If the cashier is to be believed and the accident did happen at 1pm, well, it was 6:40pm when I finally reached my destination and there were large crowds at bus stops. In the near-six hours of crisis, it seems that some people did not respond critically.

As many of our core services in this country are publicly-owned (I use this term loosely), I do think that in such situations, mobile service providers could be mobilised and inform everybody in the country. The inconvenience and traffic jams from Whitley onwards to Eng Neo were horrific. I outran, rather, out-walked quite a number of cars.

As a commuter of buses, I think it also reveals many critical flaws in the design of the distance-payment system. I had to alight and walk for 3-4km along Bukit Timah Road, losing fare based on the system if I
took another bus that was still in service at the other end of the road. Should any part of Singapore have main roads with bus stops closed for repairs, I can imagine the loopholes in the system that adds insult upon injury to commuters.

11am to 7pm [as reported by the press]. What on earth were they doing? And the bridge did not collapse; it was crooked. I think they should have left it alone (or closed one lane) until midnight to attend to repairs.

I hope that my account may be of some use to your site and that it may help to keep the flame of discussion going. Thank you for your wonderful efforts with this website and I hope everything is well.

———–

The writer wishes to remain anonymous.

Picture from the Straits Times.

For just US$7.50 a month, sign up as a subscriber on The Online Citizen Asia (and enjoy ads-free experience on our site) to support our mission to transform TOC into an alternative mainstream press.

Related Posts

Anwar criticised over appointing own daughter as his senior advisor
Malaysia

Anwar criticised over appointing own daughter as his senior advisor

03/02/2023
Level of unemployment in Indonesia shows failure in the Job Creation Law, says KSPI
Indonesia

Level of unemployment in Indonesia shows failure in the Job Creation Law, says KSPI

02/02/2023
Commentaries

The Keppel bribery scandal tests Singapore’s zero-tolerance policy towards corruption

02/02/2023
Singapore Law Watch removes commentary on CPIB’s decision to not prosecute former Keppel executives
Singapore

Singapore Law Watch removes commentary on CPIB’s decision to not prosecute former Keppel executives

02/02/2023
US businesses ‘fear internet curbs in Hong Kong’
AFP

Hong Kong offers free flights after COVID isolation

02/02/2023
Why is Gautam Adani’s Indian empire in turmoil?
AFP

Why is Gautam Adani’s Indian empire in turmoil?

02/02/2023
Subscribe
Connect withD
Login
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
Notify of
Connect withD
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Latest posts

Anwar criticised over appointing own daughter as his senior advisor

Anwar criticised over appointing own daughter as his senior advisor

03/02/2023
Level of unemployment in Indonesia shows failure in the Job Creation Law, says KSPI

Level of unemployment in Indonesia shows failure in the Job Creation Law, says KSPI

02/02/2023

The Keppel bribery scandal tests Singapore’s zero-tolerance policy towards corruption

02/02/2023
Singapore Law Watch removes commentary on CPIB’s decision to not prosecute former Keppel executives

Singapore Law Watch removes commentary on CPIB’s decision to not prosecute former Keppel executives

02/02/2023
US businesses ‘fear internet curbs in Hong Kong’

Hong Kong offers free flights after COVID isolation

02/02/2023
Why is Gautam Adani’s Indian empire in turmoil?

Why is Gautam Adani’s Indian empire in turmoil?

02/02/2023
India’s Adani shares plunge again after stock sale cancelled

India’s Adani empire loses more than US$100 bn after fraud claims

02/02/2023
Former political prisoners calls for abolishment of ISA and apology from PAP Govt on 60th anniversary of Operation Coldstore

Former political prisoners calls for abolishment of ISA and apology from PAP Govt on 60th anniversary of Operation Coldstore

02/02/2023

Trending posts

Former Singaporean shares change of life in Australia with annual pay of S$80,000 as a plumber

Former Singaporean shares change of life in Australia with annual pay of S$80,000 as a plumber

by Yee Loon
30/01/2023
25

...

Earning only S$400 a month, delivery-rider turned hawker threw in the towel after two years of running a rojak stall

Earning only S$400 a month, delivery-rider turned hawker threw in the towel after two years of running a rojak stall

by Yee Loon
26/01/2023
24

...

They have done a fine job of confusing us about the jobs situation

They have done a fine job of confusing us about the jobs situation

by Augustine Low
01/02/2023
33

...

Two Indian nationals paid about S$330 and S$730 respectively for forged certificates submitted in their S-Pass application

MOM found issuing EPs meant for foreign PMETs to PRC waitress and general worker

by Correspondent
26/01/2023
41

...

Singapore warns slower economic growth in 2023

Less than 1 in 10 jobs created in first three quarters of 2022 went to Singaporeans?

by Leong Szehian
28/01/2023
69

...

Excessively charging for an essential need, and calling it affordable because people still can pay for it?

by Terry Xu
31/01/2023
39

...

July 2010
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Jun   Aug »

The Online Citizen is a regional online publication based in Taiwan and formerly Singapore’s longest-running independent online media platform.

Navigation

  • Editorial
  • Commentaries
  • Opinion
  • Politics
  • Community

Support

  • Contact Us
  • Letter submission
  • Membership subscription

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Fact Checking Policy
  • Privacy Policy

© 2022 - 2023 The Online Citizen Asia

No Result
View All Result
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Civil Society
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
  • Politics
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
  • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Subscribers login

© 2022 - 2023 The Online Citizen Asia

wpDiscuz