Free rides a hit with
disabled commuters
Fellow bus passengers have been patient and mostly considerate
too
Zafar Anjum
[email protected]
SOME 200 wheelchair users have taken rides on the new
wheelchair-accessible buses (WAB) since their launch more than a
month ago.
To top it off, the rides were free, under a month-long promotion by
SBS Transit.
The reception has been better than expected, said the company's
corporate communications director Tammy Tan, who added that many of
the passengers were repeat passengers.
The 10 new wheelchair-friendly buses hit the roads on June 26,
plying the route of service number 21, which includes Pasir Ris,
Tampines and Jalan Besar and stops outside the Handicaps Welfare
Association (HWA) premises and Tan Tock Seng Hospital.
These buses are equipped with a manually-operated ramp at the rear
door for boarding and alighting, a bell-push button positioned at a
lower height on the railing, and a padded headrest for the
wheelchair user.
Each bus can accommodate one wheelchair-bound passenger.
An average of six wheelchair-bound passengers rode on the WAB buses
each day, with the majority of the trips made after 7pm in the
off-peak hours.
Singapore Management University student Nurulasyiqah Mohammad Taha
was one of the happy passengers.
Said the 21-year-old final-year accountancy student, who made two
rides: "It was really an exciting experience for me as that was the
first time I travelled on a public bus. On both occasions, I was
travelling for leisure purposes."
There was one little hitch though. While a public education
programme in partnership with the Land Transport Authority (LTA)
was launched to make people aware of issues associated with WAB
travel, it seems that it will take time for commuters take note of
the message.
Many commuters were not aware that the designated parking area for
wheelchairs was for that purpose.
Said Ms Nurulasyiqah: "When I boarded the bus, commuters seemed
unaware and the bus captain had to ask them nicely to make way for
me to park my wheelchair there. There is a need to make the public
more aware."
But commuters do demonstrate patience and tolerance for the
wheelchair-bound passengers.
Said bus captain Seyu Kwang Meng, 30, of service number 21: "When I
see a passenger in wheelchair wanting to board, I will open the
entrance for other commuters to board first. But on a few
occasions, these commuters said they would wait for the former to
board the bus instead. This is heart-warming and shows that our
commuters are very considerate."
When asked if SBS Transit will extend the service to other routes,
given the good response, Ms Tan said: "We will assess Service 21
over a six-month period and then make a decision in consultation
with the voluntary welfare organisations and the LTA."
