Commuting is a daily frustration for many Singaporeans. For one lady in her 30s, who lives with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), this frustration has been exponentially worse.
She started a new job at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in July, which stretched her daily commute to 90 minutes.
The stress of this long commute was only exacerbated by traditional bus apps that display cluttered lists of arrival times, overwhelming her.
Enter Jay Teo, her 38-year-old husband, who created Leavenow, a bus app designed to make her daily travel calmer.
Speaking to MS News, Jay compared standard bus apps to crowded airport flight departure boards.
Source: Oscar Chan on Pexels
“Somewhere in that wall of information is your flight, and you’re the one who has to work out which counter to go to,” he explained.
He noted that typical apps show arrival times but leave users to calculate their own schedules.
“For an ADHD brain, doing that sum over and over while screening out every bus number that doesn’t matter is genuinely tiring,” Jay said, addressing his wife’s situation.
“The apps kept handing her more information. What she needed was a decision.”
Instead of showing walls of text, Leavenow calculates walking speeds and displays just one clear countdown for when to leave.
Source: Leavenow App Store page
Since using the app, his wife saves about 20 minutes daily and feels far less rushed in the morning.
“She gets to sleep in a little more in the morning and gets home to rest a little earlier at night,” said Jay.
The app offers a 30-day free trial before charging a S$2.99 monthly subscription.
On Reddit, several netizens questioned why a bus app charges fees when many alternatives remain free.
Jay acknowledges the scepticism, noting that there are more than 30 free bus apps in the App Store.
“Most people never even reached the question ‘is Leavenow worth the S$3’,” he said. “That’s a fair first reaction.”
One netizen had even created an alternative app in response to the unfavourable reaction to the pricing model.
Jay addressed the feedback by comparing the tool to specialised dietary products.
“It’s a bit like paying more for lactose-free milk,” he told MS News.
To most people, spending extra looks like a waste of money. But for the person who genuinely needs it, it makes all the difference.
Jay added that maintaining servers, software tools, and developer fees costs several hundred dollars each year.
Jay noted that public discussions in Singapore often overlook adult ADHD because awareness centres mostly on children.
Early in their relationship, he struggled to understand why simple errands took so much effort for his wife, causing conflict between them.
It took time for her to help Jay understand that people with ADHD “think differently”.
It was also through her that he learned how often “people [with ADHD] have been labelled lazy, unfocused or stupid for it, at school, at work and in the family”.
Source: Courtesy of Jay Teo
This firsthand experience with how his wife silently deals with invisible struggles daily is Jay’s main motivation behind Leavenow.
“Most systems quietly assume everyone can do the same quick mental sums and decide under pressure,” he said.
He believes that “when someone can’t, it looks like a personal failing, when very often it’s a design failing”, with bus apps only being one example.
Jay also highlighted the “curb cut effect”, where accessibility features built for specific groups end up benefiting everyone.
He said that although Leavenow was designed for those with ADHD in mind, it could end up benefiting every public transport user who has ever found themselves waiting for a bus.
“So the direction isn’t a long list of ADHD apps,” added Jay.
“It’s to keep finding the invisible mental work a person is forced to repeat, and replace it with a better user experience.”
As Jay described, Leavenow strips away crowded lists of bus numbers and irrelevant arrival times.
Source: Leavenow App Store page
Source: Leavenow App Store page
Users can save their frequent routes and specify their walking distance to the bus stop.
Using real-time Land Transport Authority (LTA) data, the app factors in your walking speed, then generates a single, prominent countdown displaying the exact time you should head out the door.
The app can even tell users if there are seats available on board and offers live tracking of their bus.
Source: Leavenow App Store page
The latest update also allows users to send themselves sample alerts, so they know what to expect when they receive a notification to leave from the app.
For users without a paid subscription, the app retains a free version allowing them to track one bus stop.
Leavenow can be downloaded on the App Store on IOS devices.
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Featured image courtesy of Jay Teo.