Commuter speechless as man blocks MRT platform door with plastic bags, ignores alighting passengers
A commuter has called out what she described as a “new low” after witnessing a man use plastic bags to reserve space in front of the MRT platform screen doors.
Man places plastic bags in front of MRT platform doors
In a TikTok post uploaded on Tuesday (11 Aug) by @echoyq, the Original Poster (OP) said she was waiting for a train when she noticed a pile of plastic bags placed on the floor directly in front of the platform doors.
She said a woman was nearby but didn’t seem to be the owner of the bags, as she was standing “a bit of distance away”.
The OP said she even contemplated alerting MRT staff because she was concerned about the “suspicious” and unattended plastic bags.
@echoyq Consideration for others is dead yall 😞 #fyp #sg #sgtiktok #newtrend
However, it became apparent who the owner of the plastic bags was when the train arrived.
According to her, a middle-aged, able-bodied man who was seated near the doors stood up. He then collected the plastic bags and positioned himself directly in front of the platform doors.
The OP alleged that the man then boarded the train without allowing the passengers to alight first.
OP questions current state of society
“I mean what is new right guys?” the OP asked, before questioning whether society had “degenerated so much”.
She criticised the use of personal belongings to “chope” a spot in the boarding queue, before describing the behaviour as selfish and appalling.
The commuter also questioned why signs were necessary in the first place.
She went on to argue that being considerate to others should be “innate” and taught from a young age.
Source: @echoyq on TikTok
She also said that speaking up against such behaviour could result in some people admonishing her, but encouraged netizens to remain “team considerate”.
“Because we are living together as a society,” she said, adding that such behaviour could send the wrong message to younger generations.
Netizens thank OP for raising awareness
In the comments section, a netizen thanked the OP for speaking out and raising awareness on the matter.
Source: TikTok
A commenter felt that it was “time to relaunch the courtesy campaign.”
Source: TikTok
A TikTok user likened the behaviour to reserving a table using tissue paper, something that the OP frowns upon.
Source: TikTok
OP confused by unattended plastic bags
Speaking to MS News, the OP, Ee Ching, said the incident occurred on 8 Aug at around 4.30pm.
At the time, she was at Outram Park MRT station on the East-West Line headed toward Joo Koon/Tuas Link.
Ms Ching, a 28-year-old business analyst, said she didn’t pay any attention to the plastic bags at first until she realised that they were unattended and placed in front of the platform doors.
Source: Land Transport Guru for illustration purposes only
“I was confused and wondered if I should inform the station staff of the suspicious items,” she said.
She was “flabbergasted” by the man’s actions as he seemed to “have no awareness of how his actions inconvenienced others”.
She also felt that there was no need to “chope” the spot as it “wasn’t even that crowded”.
OP hoping to raise awareness
Ms Ching told MS News that she was used to seeing people “barge right in without allowing other passengers to alight first”.
However, leaving personal items in front of the platform doors unattended was a first for her.
She feels that this is human behaviour and that not much can be done, except to spread awareness.
Ms Ching also shared that there were occasions when she politely pointed out such inconsiderate behaviour to those responsible.
However, she was greeted with “disdain and admonishment”, and told to “mind her own business”.
“Ultimately, such situations are difficult to alleviate since inconsiderate behaviour is not exactly a wrongdoing,” Ms Ching lamented.
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Featured image adapted from @echoyq on TikTok & Wikipedia for illustration purposes only.
