The mother
of a bus fan is so concerned about the safety of her child, she
penned this heartfelt plea with the help of her other
son.
The mother
has witnessed her son dashing across a busy road just to get a
photograph of a bus, and hopes bus fans can consider the feelings
of their loved ones before risking their lives
unnecessarily.
STOMPer Jack helped
his mother write this plea:
"I would
like to express my deepest disappointment at these young bus
enthusiasts. My son is part of this group, and takes photos of
buses as his hobby.
"I have
seen his passion, and I have also witnessed him endangering himself
by dashing across the road in heavy traffic to the divider near
Phoenix LRT to get a photograph of a new long MAN service 190 bus a
few months ago during a family outing.
"I did not
know what was influencing his behavior. It will hurt my heart if I
lose him because of his recklessness! Recently, I was shocked to
have read about these bus enthusiasts who risk their lives for
photos with buses.
I work in
an environment where there are many heavy vehicles passing through
every day, and safety is the number one priority in my company,
given the risk of injury.
"I would
like to have this published in STOMP and call out to these youths
from the 'Singapore Buses' Facebook group/page/forum.
"They were
recently featured in the news filming a bus which was apparently on
fire and emitting thick smoke. They apparently compromised their
safety by going near the source of the fire.
"Blind
spots can be everywhere, and even though buses are your hobby, as
youths, you lack the maturity and experience in dealing with heavy
vehicles that could injure you badly in an accident.
"It was
horrifying to watch how the person who took a video of bus 138,
which was said to be on fire, approached the bus and got very close
to the vehicle without realizing the full extent of the dangers
involved. The bus could have exploded and injured the two
persons.
"Did the
two boys not think about the dangers of standing on a road when
they posed in front of and behind buses while they were in the bus
bay and on the road?
"This is
why pedestrian walkways were placed at interchanges and at the
Marina Centre Terminal. Roads are for cars, and walkways are for
pedestrians!
"How would
the parents of the two youths react if they knew their children
were endangering themselves, and that any accident that was a
result of their action could have been avoided?
"I believe
there are safer ways to takes photos of a bus without risking your
life unnecessarily.Your parents would be upset if you were been
injured or killed because of your hobby.
"Please
consider the feelings of your loved ones."
"Written on
behalf of my mother, Ms Tan, who wishes to see this published on
STOMP for her son (my brother) to see his mother's appeal to
him."
What about bus fans which don't take photos of buses? The safest
way is to take them from an overhead bridge.