O3 Jun 2007, New Paper
By Tan Mae Lynn
Bus-stop bust-up He leaps back on bus, then...
# ROW ERUPTS OVER PUSHING.
2 men argue on bus. Younger man alights but verbal spat continues through opened door
# ENRAGED, YOUNGER MAN JUMPS ON BUS.
He pushes older man to ground and kicks him relentlessly. Other commuters try to stop attack
# ATTACKER QUICKLY GETS OFF BUS.
Victim scrambles onto his feet, gives chase and both men exchange vulgarities.
---------------------------
JUST like road bullies, there are bus bullies too.
SBS Transit, Singapore's largest bus operator, has noticed an increase in violent incidents on its buses. And they appear to be sparked off by seemingly innocuous events.
In a recent incident captured on video, a quarrel between a youngster and a middle-aged man turned nasty on a crowded bus.
Before anyone could intervene, the young guy attacked the latter, even stomping on him at one point.
The man fell on his back as he tried to fend off the blows. The youngster continued to kick him repeatedly.
The assailant then turned around and bolted. The man picked himself up and followed his attacker out of the bus, but soon gave up the chase.
The two men taunted each other with vulgarities from a distance.
The presence of scores of passengers on the SBS Transit bus did not deter the assailant. The video was taken by a commuter who posted it on the Internet.
According to the witness, the incident happened on a No 23 bus, outside Sim Lim Square, around 2.30pm on 10 Feb.
He claimed there had been some pushing and shoving inside the bus before it stopped.
Last month, The New Paper on Sunday reported that a 17-year-old Hwa Chong Institution student punched a bus captain in the face.
The driver had found the teen's girlfriend using an invalid card and prevented him from leaving the bus.
37 REPORTED CASES SO FAR
In the first five months of this year, SBS Transit received 37 reports of quarrels, fights or assaults on its buses. Of these, 15 involved passengers assaulting bus captains.
Earlier this year, the company managed to track down a bully who tried to sneak on board without paying, then punched the bus captain when he was confronted. The bus captain suffered a bloody nose.
Although the culprit fled, the entire incident was caught on camera, SBS Transit spokesman Tammy Tan said.
She said: 'The aggressor's face was caught on the CCTV and recently, he was spotted on board by another bus captain and the police were alerted. They then detained the man.'
Ms Tan added that the company started tracking such cases at the start of this year as it had noticed that violence on buses was occurring more frequently.
SBS Transit is aware of the case captured on video. However, no passenger had lodged a complaint.
In another recent case, a ticketing officer at the airport, who wished to be known only as Mr Vel, 34, said he saw a student punch a bus driver over a concession card which was apparently no longer valid.
Mr Vel said: 'When the student started arguing with the driver, some passengers did go forward and ask them to stop arguing. But when the boy punched the driver, everybody got scared. Some people started to get off and take another bus. I also got off the bus.'
Those who take buses regularly say fights are rare. But it's not unusual to see heated arguments on buses.
Madam E T Teo, 32, said: 'I've never seen a physical fight on a bus before, but I've seen quite a few arguments.
'Usually, it's between the bus driver and passengers, students mostly... because they either try to cheat on the fare or they are suspected of using someone else's concession card.'
Madam Teo added that while some passengers just pay up or alight immediately, others continue to argue with the driver. She said: 'When the driver asks to check their card, they stand there arguing with the driver in an aggressive manner.'
And another video shows such an incident. But passengers are not the ones who always start the arguments.
Mr Gary Juay, 31, said: 'I've seen drivers stop the bus to check on (passengers') tickets, and he doesn't ask nicely.' That, he felt, can provoke the passenger.
Also, most people avoid getting into heated arguments because 'they don't want to look bad in public'.
And commuters should be aware that CCTV cameras are fitted in 420 of SBS Transit's 2,700 buses.
Said its spokesman: 'All our buses are equipped with an automatic vehicle despatch system where the bus captain can communicate with the operations control centre, and seek assistance when required.
'In an emergency situation, bus captains can also activate a priority button allowing the operations control centre to listen in on what is happening on board.
'Mobile traffic inspectors or patrol cars will be activated to the scene, if necessary, to assist bus captains.'
And in some situations, like when the driver is assaulted, the police are also alerted at the same time.
By Tan Mae Lynn
Bus-stop bust-up He leaps back on bus, then...
# ROW ERUPTS OVER PUSHING.
2 men argue on bus. Younger man alights but verbal spat continues through opened door
# ENRAGED, YOUNGER MAN JUMPS ON BUS.
He pushes older man to ground and kicks him relentlessly. Other commuters try to stop attack
# ATTACKER QUICKLY GETS OFF BUS.
Victim scrambles onto his feet, gives chase and both men exchange vulgarities.
---------------------------
JUST like road bullies, there are bus bullies too.
SBS Transit, Singapore's largest bus operator, has noticed an increase in violent incidents on its buses. And they appear to be sparked off by seemingly innocuous events.
In a recent incident captured on video, a quarrel between a youngster and a middle-aged man turned nasty on a crowded bus.
Before anyone could intervene, the young guy attacked the latter, even stomping on him at one point.
The man fell on his back as he tried to fend off the blows. The youngster continued to kick him repeatedly.
The assailant then turned around and bolted. The man picked himself up and followed his attacker out of the bus, but soon gave up the chase.
The two men taunted each other with vulgarities from a distance.
The presence of scores of passengers on the SBS Transit bus did not deter the assailant. The video was taken by a commuter who posted it on the Internet.
According to the witness, the incident happened on a No 23 bus, outside Sim Lim Square, around 2.30pm on 10 Feb.
He claimed there had been some pushing and shoving inside the bus before it stopped.
Last month, The New Paper on Sunday reported that a 17-year-old Hwa Chong Institution student punched a bus captain in the face.
The driver had found the teen's girlfriend using an invalid card and prevented him from leaving the bus.
37 REPORTED CASES SO FAR
In the first five months of this year, SBS Transit received 37 reports of quarrels, fights or assaults on its buses. Of these, 15 involved passengers assaulting bus captains.
Earlier this year, the company managed to track down a bully who tried to sneak on board without paying, then punched the bus captain when he was confronted. The bus captain suffered a bloody nose.
Although the culprit fled, the entire incident was caught on camera, SBS Transit spokesman Tammy Tan said.
She said: 'The aggressor's face was caught on the CCTV and recently, he was spotted on board by another bus captain and the police were alerted. They then detained the man.'
Ms Tan added that the company started tracking such cases at the start of this year as it had noticed that violence on buses was occurring more frequently.
SBS Transit is aware of the case captured on video. However, no passenger had lodged a complaint.
In another recent case, a ticketing officer at the airport, who wished to be known only as Mr Vel, 34, said he saw a student punch a bus driver over a concession card which was apparently no longer valid.
Mr Vel said: 'When the student started arguing with the driver, some passengers did go forward and ask them to stop arguing. But when the boy punched the driver, everybody got scared. Some people started to get off and take another bus. I also got off the bus.'
Those who take buses regularly say fights are rare. But it's not unusual to see heated arguments on buses.
Madam E T Teo, 32, said: 'I've never seen a physical fight on a bus before, but I've seen quite a few arguments.
'Usually, it's between the bus driver and passengers, students mostly... because they either try to cheat on the fare or they are suspected of using someone else's concession card.'
Madam Teo added that while some passengers just pay up or alight immediately, others continue to argue with the driver. She said: 'When the driver asks to check their card, they stand there arguing with the driver in an aggressive manner.'
And another video shows such an incident. But passengers are not the ones who always start the arguments.
Mr Gary Juay, 31, said: 'I've seen drivers stop the bus to check on (passengers') tickets, and he doesn't ask nicely.' That, he felt, can provoke the passenger.
Also, most people avoid getting into heated arguments because 'they don't want to look bad in public'.
And commuters should be aware that CCTV cameras are fitted in 420 of SBS Transit's 2,700 buses.
Said its spokesman: 'All our buses are equipped with an automatic vehicle despatch system where the bus captain can communicate with the operations control centre, and seek assistance when required.
'In an emergency situation, bus captains can also activate a priority button allowing the operations control centre to listen in on what is happening on board.
'Mobile traffic inspectors or patrol cars will be activated to the scene, if necessary, to assist bus captains.'
And in some situations, like when the driver is assaulted, the police are also alerted at the same time.
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