Article from TODAY Voices, 3 Aug 2006.
For a cleaner, spacious
ride
Commuters make known their choices
Yvonne Lim
Voices & Commentary editor
AS the Public Transport Council (PTC) turned up the heat on SMRT
and SBS Transit to meet defined service standards ("Getting buses
shipshape", July 27), ahead of the impending fare hikes, commuters
got down to dirty business.
That is to say, a fair number of readers asked for public transport
operators to be taken to task also for the state of cleanliness on
their buses.
As Diana Tan, who wrote in to agree with letter writer Graham
McEune ("Flag down those bus bugbears", July 29), put it:
"Dirty floors and windows that look like
they have never been cleaned I don't know what tourists think,
especially when the rest of Singapore is so clean. As any housewife
will tell you, a mop, a bucket and a wet cloth are all you need.
Could someone tell SBS this?"
To be fair, the transport operator's efforts do go further than
this. Referring to its previous response to similar complaints, See
Leong Kit noted: "SBS Transit's reply, that buses are given a
thorough cleaning and fumigation once a month, with the bus drivers
doing a quick sweep daily with broom and dustpan, is
unacceptable."
Harking back to perennial complaints
about stuffy air-conditioning, mouldy air-con vents, cockroaches
and mosquitoes, he asked if such "sloppy attention" to public
hygiene could have contributed to the seasonal flu
outbreak..
See suggested the PTC impose standards on maintenance and hygiene.
"After the buses stop operating, bring in cleaning contractors with
heavy-duty vacuum cleaners to thoroughly clean the buses daily.
Areas where many hands have touched, such
as grab poles and pull handles, should be wiped with
disinfectant."
Other common bugbears included the advertisements pasted over bus
windows and inadequate leg space.
Raymund Koh, for instance, complained to SMRT that he felt
"particularly squeezed in the seat just behind the first exit door"
of a "bendy bus".
He received the response that seats were
fitted by the manufacturer based on the regulated 23cm of
space.
"People of the current generation are generally much taller. Our
public buses have very little leg room between seats, which tall
passengers like myself cannot squeeze into on long journeys.
We need to sit slanting," he said.
Soh Poh Huat was glad the PTC was "finally" proposing to lay down
the law on bus frequencies and waiting times, among other things.
But he wondered when it would extend the
service standards to "buses not stopping close to bus bays to
facilitate boarding/alighting", and "bus captains who fail to
ensure the elderly, expectant mothers or parents carrying children
are seated prior to driving off".
His suggestion: That PTC set up an automated system to which
commuters can instantly SMS their feedback. The authorities could
then generate monthly reports. "For example, if there are more than
X number of complaints, fines can be imposed," he wrote.
Going down a somewhat tangential road, Seah Leong Khai wonders if
the PTC can extend its purview to commuter behaviour as well.
"We hear complaints about passengers not
giving up their seats to those who need it. Why should we, full
fare-paying adults, be made to stand, while able-bodied young
people on concessionary fares sit to enjoy the ride?"
What he wants: For PTC to make it compulsory for students and
national servicemen to give up their seats to senior citizens,
pregnant women and other adults when the bus is full. Inspectors
could enforce this.
"This makes business sense. Full-fare paying passengers should have
priority over those who pay discounted fares, except for senior
citizens. In other businesses such as air travel, you get priority
when you pay a premium," he argued.
