The Road To Hell...
It was raining quite heavily when I left home today. Thank goodness I tend to travel off-peak, so that I seldom need to squeeze with others for places on buses and the MRT. However, I was in for a big shock when I got on the bus today. Even though the bus was quite empty, there were hardly any usable seats, since most were wet because water was dripping from the roof of the bus. So I wondered if anyone bothered to take an audit of the transport infrastructure when it rains. Are the transport companies supposed to obligated to fix the leaks in the buses? For come rush-hour, the leaks would still be there, and the bus would then only hold about half the passengers it is supposed to. On paper, of course, there is a bus capable of carrying about 50 people. In practice, it is only able to take about 30, with most standing.
Then, I started to look out of the window of the bus, as it went along its way. Most of the pavements along the way had stretched that were actually flooded. Even though it was only under less than 5 cm of water, it would render the sidewalk unusable by pedestrians. Again, on paper, the pedestrians have sidewalks to walk between bus shelters and the apartment blocks. In reality, it was not quite so when it rains. Of course, I was wise enough to have worn a pair of slippers, so that my feet would not mind getting wet (I had to wade through bits of Orchard Boulevard to get to the bus shelter opposite ION Orchard, so I was prepared for the worst).
It made me also consider the covered walkways linking HDB blocks. I guess they must have gone for aesthetics and economy over functional design when it came to these, since some of the roofs are so high that they would not shelter anyone from rain if there were any wind (we all know that it tends to get windy when it rains).
So, I was left wondering if the planning and building of public infrastructure was more a case of cover my ass by having something, rather than actually trying to meet the need. Somehow, I think the original intention was lost in the execution. With the number of times roads get dug up and resurfaced, perhaps they only consider how fast they get the job done, rather than whether it is well done. Such action leads to the increased number of uneven roads that lead to water channels in the rain, and the collection of water in some sections of others.
Next time it rains heavily, I would like some government official to wait in the bus shelter opposite Valley Point without an umbrella. I wonder how long he would last before he gets drenched by the splash of water as cars and buses drive past. Something I learnt in my previous job that even the best of intentions can go wrong, when you are not the one using the facility (and fully understand the crux of the problem). Next time they plan something, rather than ask a scholar who drives to work, sits in his comfortable office and earns a big pay package, ask a man on the street who actually is going to use it.
Then, I started to look out of the window of the bus, as it went along its way. Most of the pavements along the way had stretched that were actually flooded. Even though it was only under less than 5 cm of water, it would render the sidewalk unusable by pedestrians. Again, on paper, the pedestrians have sidewalks to walk between bus shelters and the apartment blocks. In reality, it was not quite so when it rains. Of course, I was wise enough to have worn a pair of slippers, so that my feet would not mind getting wet (I had to wade through bits of Orchard Boulevard to get to the bus shelter opposite ION Orchard, so I was prepared for the worst).
It made me also consider the covered walkways linking HDB blocks. I guess they must have gone for aesthetics and economy over functional design when it came to these, since some of the roofs are so high that they would not shelter anyone from rain if there were any wind (we all know that it tends to get windy when it rains).
So, I was left wondering if the planning and building of public infrastructure was more a case of cover my ass by having something, rather than actually trying to meet the need. Somehow, I think the original intention was lost in the execution. With the number of times roads get dug up and resurfaced, perhaps they only consider how fast they get the job done, rather than whether it is well done. Such action leads to the increased number of uneven roads that lead to water channels in the rain, and the collection of water in some sections of others.
Next time it rains heavily, I would like some government official to wait in the bus shelter opposite Valley Point without an umbrella. I wonder how long he would last before he gets drenched by the splash of water as cars and buses drive past. Something I learnt in my previous job that even the best of intentions can go wrong, when you are not the one using the facility (and fully understand the crux of the problem). Next time they plan something, rather than ask a scholar who drives to work, sits in his comfortable office and earns a big pay package, ask a man on the street who actually is going to use it.