Sunday, May 15, 2005
I may have to walk ard SG soon
Today, SMRT decided to 'explain' their need for the transport price hike.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/050514/5/singapore147515.html
But it still doesn't really talk abt the profits they have.
I'm, for some reason, unable to attach the link to the Today papers.. but there was a more detailed article there, with an interview with Ms Saw Phaik Hwa, SMRT's president and chief executive.
In it, she talked about the new buses they are buying and blah blah blah...
But err... can't you use the profits you earned to buy those buses?
Then she talked about keeping the prices for sch children the same, extending concessionary travel hours for the elderly...
But what about ppl like me? What about the common folks? Just coz we have, supposedly, jobs, are able-bodied beings, doesn't mean the price hike wun affect us.
I mean, basically at the end of the day, SMRT is trying to make the price hike sound like, there's no price hike at all, coz oh, it's just going to really affect tourists and those who dun use the MRT much.
But the truth is, it will hurt the common people.
You're providing a public good... if you really need the money, get the govt to give it to you. That's the responsibility of the govt. Coz if you want less vehicles on the street, that means you have to make public transport damn attractive an option to the people. But with the price hike coming along, that's not encouragement for someone to ditch his car.
And so what if our public transport rates are among the cheapest? That is not justification. It's like saying, oh, coz our prices are not even close to say, HK for example, so let's just increase it so as to narrow the gap.
The funny thing was... Today would quote Ms Saw, then add in, 'SMRT's request for higher fares come son the back of the firm's record net profit of $126.9 million for the year ended Mar 31'.
It's like a reminder that throughout the interview, Ms Saw didn't mention a thing about those profits.
Sigh... I really hope they dun increase prices... I'm already spending more than $10 a week on transport, where I dun get a seat on the MRT, have nowhere to hold on to to stop myself from falling every time the train jerks (and it happens often)... and on the bus, I have to put up with either extra loud noise coming from TV Mobile whenever some stupid program is on, or when there's an interesting show, no sound at all. Oh, let's not forget the crockroaches running over your feet. I think that's what TV Mobile is for... to distract you in the hope that maybe you wun notice the rubbish on the bus floor.
They think they're all powerful just coz they've monopoly power.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/050514/5/singapore147515.html
But it still doesn't really talk abt the profits they have.
I'm, for some reason, unable to attach the link to the Today papers.. but there was a more detailed article there, with an interview with Ms Saw Phaik Hwa, SMRT's president and chief executive.
In it, she talked about the new buses they are buying and blah blah blah...
But err... can't you use the profits you earned to buy those buses?
Then she talked about keeping the prices for sch children the same, extending concessionary travel hours for the elderly...
But what about ppl like me? What about the common folks? Just coz we have, supposedly, jobs, are able-bodied beings, doesn't mean the price hike wun affect us.
I mean, basically at the end of the day, SMRT is trying to make the price hike sound like, there's no price hike at all, coz oh, it's just going to really affect tourists and those who dun use the MRT much.
But the truth is, it will hurt the common people.
You're providing a public good... if you really need the money, get the govt to give it to you. That's the responsibility of the govt. Coz if you want less vehicles on the street, that means you have to make public transport damn attractive an option to the people. But with the price hike coming along, that's not encouragement for someone to ditch his car.
And so what if our public transport rates are among the cheapest? That is not justification. It's like saying, oh, coz our prices are not even close to say, HK for example, so let's just increase it so as to narrow the gap.
The funny thing was... Today would quote Ms Saw, then add in, 'SMRT's request for higher fares come son the back of the firm's record net profit of $126.9 million for the year ended Mar 31'.
It's like a reminder that throughout the interview, Ms Saw didn't mention a thing about those profits.
Sigh... I really hope they dun increase prices... I'm already spending more than $10 a week on transport, where I dun get a seat on the MRT, have nowhere to hold on to to stop myself from falling every time the train jerks (and it happens often)... and on the bus, I have to put up with either extra loud noise coming from TV Mobile whenever some stupid program is on, or when there's an interesting show, no sound at all. Oh, let's not forget the crockroaches running over your feet. I think that's what TV Mobile is for... to distract you in the hope that maybe you wun notice the rubbish on the bus floor.
They think they're all powerful just coz they've monopoly power.
