Baey Yam Keng photographed on new bus service 460, netizens amused by apparent public transport ‘trend’

Baey Yam Keng rides new bus service 460 in Tampines, netizens say he pushed for it due to resident feedback

After numerous sightings of politicians on Singapore’s public transport, Baey Yam Keng hopped on board the new bus service 460 in Tampines yesterday (27 April).

Amused netizens commented on the apparent “photo ops” trend recently, but many praised Mr Baey nonetheless.

Fourth politician with photo taken on public transport in April

On 9 and 10 April, Workers’ Party chief Pritam Singh and Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Gan Kim Yong were photographed on an MRT and LRT train, respectively.

Mr Singh received mostly positive reactions, while Mr Gan had more divided comments.

On 26 April, Senior Minister of State (SMS) Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim posted a photo of himself taking the MRT train to the Malay Heritage Centre.

This time, he drew more negative reactions from netizens, calling the action performative.

As a result, Minister of State for Transport Baey Yam Keng quickly got attention when, on 27 April, he was photographed taking a bus.

Baey Yam Keng rides new Tampines bus service on first day

The new SBS Transit bus service 460 started service that day to serve residents of Tampines GreenGlade, GreenGlen, and GreenCrest.

Its route took it back and forth, a 2.4km route from Tampines Interchange.

Bus service 460 serves a similar area to the existing bus service 296, but takes a more direct route and skips five stops for a shorter commute.

As part of his regular efforts to improve public services, Mr Baey sought feedback from commuters and promised continued improvements based on their input.

In response to Mr Baey seemingly joining the trend, some netizens questioned why politicians were “suddenly having photo ops on public transport“.

Netizens defend Baey Yam Keng, say he pushed for new bus

However, many others noted that, as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area and Minister of State for Transport, it made sense for him to try a new service on its first day.

One commenter also praised Mr Baey, calling him a “people’s person” in Tampines. They attributed the new bus service lining up with the “trend” as just bad timing.

One user added that Mr Baey had been instrumental in pushing for the new bus service. They attributed the service to feedback from local residents about overcrowded buses, which Mr Baey personally addressed.

Back on 18 Aug 2025, Mr Baey made a Facebook post about bus service 296 being too crowded for residents.

He went to observe the crowding himself in the morning and asked the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to do the same.

Ng Eng Hen photographed taking MRT train to eat hawker food

On a more humorous note, former Minister for Defence Ng Eng Hen appeared to have joined the trend himself.

Dr Ng, who has been enjoying retirement as a local food connoisseur, was recently photographed happily riding the MRT train to Maxwell Food Centre.

“With this new long range capability, I can now target hawker food faraway!” he declared.

Netizens enjoyed the lighthearted approach, feeling that he was intentionally making a meme about the trend.

One person also noted that nobody seemed to have given up their seat to the retired 67-year-old.

Also read: Faishal Ibrahim takes MRT to Malay Heritage Centre event due to traffic jam, draws mixed reactions

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Featured image adapted from Baey Yam Keng on Facebook and Ng Eng Hen on Facebook.