Public Transport - MRT and Buses

I was very tired .. my left leg still hurt after 3 games of bowling 2 weeks ago. Yes, I enjoyed the game. I scored 95-125-131 .. not bad, considering I have not been bowling for the past few years. I was quite pleased with my score but regret making the greatest mistake in my life! I forgot to warm up my stiff limbs before the game. The result .. an over-stretched left leg muscle from my thigh to my calf and an injured knee cap leaving me limping for about 1 week. Now, it's much better but still abit sore.

So imagine poor me stepping into the MRT train and so happy to find an empty seat.. alas! my happiness is short-lived. An old lady walked in and stand in front of me. I waited for a while, no one makes a move. I decided to give up my seat to her.

I looked around me at those seating comfortably and wish someone has a heart to give up his seat to the poor lady instead of me .. there's a young man busy sms-ing .. another tired office worker dozing off .. no, more than one .. a couple of young ladies busy talking .. a few reading .. none of these people makes a move. I felt like screaming! I'm tired, you know .. my leg hurts .. hey, you people .. what happen? didn't you see that old lady .. or do you pretend not to see? At times like this, I wish I don't have a consience and seat right thru.

Hanging on to the railing, I diverted my thoughts and think about other thing .. somehow the high cost of transportation irks me.

You know, a new stored-value card here costs $15 .. out of which $5 is to defray the cost for the card and only $3 is refundable, leaving me with only $7 value in the card for travelling. I have to ensure this card stays with me for life by topping-up once the value is low.

The interesting thing about the $3 refundable deposit,is that I might never get it back. The only time I foresee getting back my $3 is when I renounce the use of public transport. *sigh**

I'm a frequent public transport user, that means I need to "donate" (I treat it as a donation, I felt better that way) at least $5 to the transport co. before I can buy a stored value card for travelling around my city. (Strange land i"m living in .. I want convenience and a slight rebate, so I need to pay for a card to travel)

Of cos, I can do away with the $5 + $3 deposit, by paying for every single trip but things are not so simple. If I do that, a single trip will cost more than when I paid by using the stored value card. On top of that, I will lose out on the 25 cents rebate esp when I have to take a train and a bus, everyday before I reach my house. What choice do I have? My transport cost works up to close to $4 a day!

If the transport company don't make enough money and go bust, then it will be worse, I think. I have to buy my own car, if I can afford to, or a bicycle and learn to cycle or walk to my destination. None of these options appeal to me.

So, every day, I prayed hard that they are able to make a decent profit. The moment, the public transport company announces that they are in the red, or don't make enough money, I start to shiver as that means a possible fare hike. But thankfully, they make enough $$$$$ most of the time. I wonder what is public transport??

Still, I'm proud of my country's efficient transport system. Though I felt that they should be more prudent in their spending and do away with unnecessary stuff like a mobile TV. I also pray they are more cost-conscious in their planning.

Aiya! my wandering mind! jay dreaming again!