Man says he must exit MRT station to hand child to mother-in-law, asks Acting Transport Minister if rule is necessary
A parent of a toddler, who was apparently made to tap out of an MRT station to hand his child to his mother-in-law, has written an open letter to Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow asking if this is necessary.
On June 9, Instagram user @coach_danielsg, whose real name is Daniel Chow, posted a video of himself passing his child and stroller over a barrier separating the paid and unpaid areas of an MRT station, presumably to his mother-in-law. The post’s caption contained a letter to the Acting Transport Minister.
In the post, Chow explained that both he and his wife have to work on one Saturday each month. To hand over caregiving duties to his mother-in-law, Chow would usually ask MRT staff to open a side exit so he could pass his toddler and stroller to her outside the paid area.
Chow said that while station staff have been helpful and allowed his child through, he claimed that the station manager would insist he tap his card to exit, hand his child to his mother-in-law, and tap back in, incurring an additional $2 in fare.
According to Chow, he reasoned with the manager that:
- Babies travel on the MRT for free
- Cost of living is already high
- Four staff members “sitting and giggling inside the control room, not even doing any serious work”
- It was about 8am on a Saturday, and there were hardly any commuters at the station
However, the station manager explained that it was “for security” and that he was just doing his job.
Noting that SMRT had come under the spotlight recently, likely referencing an incident involving a power washer artist, Chow took the opportunity to ask the Acting Transport Minister whether there was a rule requiring him to tap out and in again, and if so, whether it could be removed.
He added: “Does Singapore really want to promote families and raise TFR? If yes, can SMRT come on board to create that future?”
In addition to writing to the Acting Transport Minister, Chow also addressed Minister for Education Desmond Lee and Minister of State Jasmin Lau in a comment, asking if the ministry could relook the education system to encourage critical thinking to raise a workforce that questions orders.
He also addresses Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Indranee Rajah, chair of the Marriage & Parenthood Reset workgroup, in a comment, saying: “Dear Madam @indraneerajah I found another reason that might be lowering TFR in Singapore.Hope we can remove one more barrier to raising kids and cost of living in SG.”
SMRT says they’ve reached out to parent
In response to Stomp’s queries, an SMRT spokesperson said the transport operator has reached out to Chow to engage him.
“We have also spoken with our staff on circumstances when some discretion can be exercised — as the majority of our station staff did in this case,” said the representative.
The spokesperson also urge parents or caregivers with infants or young children who require assistance to approach staff at the Pasenger Service Centre. They may also apply for a concession card at SimplyGo ticket offices for their child, as long as they are:
- Between 0.9m and 1.2m tall
- Below seven years old
- Not studying in a primary school yet
Stomp has reached out to Chow for more details
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