Last Saturday (10 Feb), passengers aboard an SBS Transit bus experienced an alleged 40-minute delay due to its captain stopping the vehicle to help an elderly passenger who had fainted.
Unhappy with the hold-up, some commuters alighted while others stayed on the bus, waiting for the ride to resume.
Confirming the details of the incident, an SBS Transit spokesperson said that the captain had informed commuters they could take another bus to continue with their journey.
The spokesperson also clarified that the entire incident only lasted around 25 minutes.
Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, 73-year-old retiree Madam Xiao said that she and her family had gone to Marina Bay to catch the Chinese New Year drone show on Saturday.
They then took the bus home at around 9pm.
When the bus stopped outside Downtown MRT Station, it remained there for an unexpectedly long time.
Source: Wikipedia
Madam Xiao claimed that the delay lasted almost 40 minutes and that commuters were in the dark about what was happening.
Some passengers wanted to exit the bus, but since the card reader was not activated, about 30 of them decided to stay as they did not want to pay the full bus fare.
On the other hand, a few decided to get off anyway without tapping out.
Madam Xiao later learned that a man on the bus had fainted and the captain, along with other passengers, was helping him off the bus before taking care of him.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
While she acknowledged that it was good of the bus captain to look after the man, Madam Xiao said that he should have informed the waiting passengers first.
“It wasn’t until the ambulance arrived that the driver continued driving without any explanation or apology,” she said. “Many people were very angry.”
Although she expected a quicker journey as she was on an express bus service, Madam Xiao said it was almost 11pm by the time she got home.
Responding to queries by MS News, SBS Transit spokesperson Grace Wu clarified that the incident, which occurred on Bus 502, lasted around 25 minutes.
Source: Land Transport Guru, for illustration purposes only
At about 9.15pm, an elderly passenger appeared unwell and fainted when the bus was in front of Downtown MRT Station.
Noticing this, the bus captain immediately reached out to render assistance. He then contacted the Operations Control Centre (OCC) to activate an ambulance.
Based on CCTV footage, the bus captain had managed the situation according to SBS Transit’s standard operating procedure.
“He informed the passengers on board that an ambulance had been activated and in the meantime, they could take another bus to continue on their journey,” said Ms Wu.
The captain also made sure to mention that he did not know how long it would take for the ambulance to arrive.
In addition, the front and exit doors were open and the card readers were in operation for those who wanted to alight from the bus.
Eventually, the ambulance arrived and conveyed the passenger to the hospital for treatment.
Also read: SBS Bus Captain Supports Elderly Man With Injured Leg As He Boards & Alights Vehicle
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Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News.
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