Passenger rants about PHV driver streaming videos while driving: ‘You’re breaking your own rice bowl’
A viral rant by an irate passenger of a private-hire vehicle (PHV) about their driver streaming a video on his phone has left netizens divided, with some accusing the passenger of overreacting and others stressing that it could be a distraction.
A video showing the in-vehicle situation was shared on the Instagram page @sgfollowsall on Sept 8. It is unclear when the incident occurred.
In the clip, a picture-in-picture video is seen playing above the driver’s navigation app on a phone mounted near the middle air-con vent.
The driver’s eyes seem to remain on the road except for a brief moment, when he appears to glance at the device while the vehicle is stationary at a traffic crossing.
The passenger said they shared the video to raise awareness and planned to report the incident, describing it as an “everyday sight” among PHV drivers.
“Call it complaining, call it being a Karen, call it public shaming, I could not care less. And do not even try to gaslight me about ‘ruining someone’s rice bowl’ either. If you choose to gamble passengers’ lives just to binge-watch shows while navigating traffic, you are the one breaking your own rice bowl,” the passenger says.
According to the caption, the passenger did not raise the matter with the driver — believed to be from Grab — because of “viral videos of drivers getting aggressive and shouting at passengers”.
Many netizens accuse passenger of overracting
The post has racked up more than 80,000 views, 800 reactions and 75 comments,
A considerable number of netizens took the side of the driver or felt the passenger was overreacting.
“No distraction at all. You’re being overly sensitive,” one Instagram user said.
Another netizen, who is also a PHV driver, tried explaining: “Passengers, don’t be overreacting. Some drivers do this in order to stay focused and awake — it keeps our head moving without spacing out from the constant driving.” The commenter added that they needed to keep working for bonuses, “so as long as they don’t start texting while driving or holding the phone, I’m okay with this”.
One commenter, who felt passengers were complaining about trivial matters, said: “Next thing y’all will start complaining about drivers breathing too loudly.”
However, another netizen hit back: “I hope your doctor watches dramas when performing surgery on you.”
Several netizens felt that it was OK if the driver was only listening to the video.
“Some don’t watch, they just listen,” said one. “Obviously the driver is just listening then watching. Nothing wrong, as you can see the screen is so small,” another said.
But there were those who disagreed.
“Listening to music is the norm... anything distracting from driving by sight is always dangerous… a small screen is worse,” said an Instagram user.
In response to Stomp’s queries, a Grab spokesperson stated that the company treats safety as its top priority.
Grab drivers are urged to remain focused on the road when driving to protect themselves, passengers, and other road users.
Passengers who encounter unsafe behaviours may report them directly via Grab’s in-app Help Centre.
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