I HAVE not taken the MRT for almost two years. Why? The simple reason is that there are no vacant seats. And now the recent news that SMRT will remove more seats to make room for standing passengers makes me not want to take MRT even more.

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Camillus Yap,you are a boneless weakling! Too niggard to pay for ERP and other charges for owning a car? Or you simply cannot afford to own one? SMRT system is mass transportation and during peak hours it will be packed. Let me tell you this: I have seen and rode with this man aged 70yrs old riding the Shinkansen from Nagoya to Osaka every other day. Nobody yielded their seats to him. He is graceful enough to say that he has being standing for the past 30yrs. This is a true story. Shame on you.

the writer Yap has touched on a very long sore point with commuters -" My suggestion is that if SMRT cannot manage so many passengers, it should increase frequency even more. If three minutes is not good enough, make less than three minutes. This is what I call a world-class transport system, not making passengers squeeze like sardines".
As usual it will fall on deaf ears and some dumb reason like unoverhauled signalling systems not able to do the job. Now Temasek has taken a pay cut, would SMRT and the like do likewise and use the savings to lower transport fares?

The bus should be full of seats. No one is supposed to stand when the bus is on the move but belt-seated in line with LTA policy. Need more such buses. Safety comes first. One pays to sit and not stand.

I have problem agreeing with the writer's reason for not taking MRT, but I do agree with the fact that SMRT is not a world-class transporatuon system.

SMRT and the PAP government always like to boast that Singapore has a world-class transportation system, but anyone who had lived in Hong Kong knows that their is truly a world class system...the cheap and easily available public transportations bring you to almost every part of the territory within good time (during peak hours, their trains arrived at every 2 minutes...try beating that, SMRT, then you can call a world-class system).

SMRT can never compare itself with Hong Kong's MTR, and they should stop misleading and decieving ignorant Singaporeans that we do have a world-class system.

SMRT can only call itself a WORLD-CLASS MONEY AND PROFIT MAKING COMPANY at the expense of the many poor Singaporeans...and I blame this on the PAP government who have only one KPI for government-owned companies - MAKE MORE MONEY AND PROFIT!!!!

There are 4.5million people in Singapore that has to move around the island for work or play. You either pack the trains or pack the roads. When we reach 6.5million as the government planned, the situation will get worse. This is the reality and we should get used to it, just as people in Hong Kong have gotten used to packed trains with no seats. There is no way that Camillus can have his wish for acres of personal space on trains or on the road.

Sometimes, I'm glad I ride a bike to get around. I get a seat and pay no ERP.

The stupid writer thinks if he doesnot use MRT, the whole MRT system will go bankrupt. How stupid of him to say that he cannot get seats to sit in MRT. Then how come so many people are sitting? The time waster says he wont buy car becaue of ERP; he wont take bus because frequency is bad; he wont take MRT because no seats. I suggest you walk man. Good for your health also.

Camillus is trying to tell you guys to boycott SMRT as he had led by example. Another method of demo and veto where you will not be nabbed by police. Ony then SMRT will be more public-orientated.

is it just me or do other readers feel our MRT trains has poor ergonomic design?

I mean, look at the hand rails for passengers to hang out to, there is only 1 strip of hand rails, so it only encourages passengers to share that rail and you basically have to stand and look at each other, which by human nature feels awkward at such close proximity.

At the entrance of the train, there is only that one pole for passengers to grab on to which is insufficient during peak hours because you can see a number of passengers often trying to do the 'balancing' act because there is no rails, poles to hold on to.

The Japanese are so innovative and creative when it comes to space. On their trains, they have racks (god forbid SMRT to erect those in fear of blocking advertising space although there are hardly any advertising done these days) where commuters can put their bags, gears or other barang barang to make more space for themselves and others.

Oh, last but not least, every morning during rush area commute, can someone tell me what is the role of the SMRT office walking up and down along the tracks, staring helplessly at the packed trains, not doing anything. What exactly is their role? They are not doing any survey, they are not offering to encourage the commuters to move to the center, it is like they were told to be up there but am resentful and just waiting for time to pass until they get back to their station.

Ironic of lower cost of owning car but more people are squeezed into jam-packed public transports.

Owning a car is now so much cheaper than over 10 years ago.

Car prices have fallen so much over the years with lower import tax, lower additional tax, lower COE, lower road tax, and healthy competition from parallel importers, etc.

A Japanese saloon car may cost $120,000 a decade ago now cost just over $50,000. A Merc Benz may cost $300,000 but now cost just over $130,000. Take into consideration inflation, the ACTUAL COST is actually much much lower than the $50,000 or $130,000.

But our public transport cost is a one way up with no chance of adjusting down for decades I can remember. Lowering of all vehicle taxes & lower COE and now lower fuel cost are not filtered to the public transport commuters one bit.

The rich enjoy the mega transport cost saving here in Singapore, no doubt.