No Eating or Drinking: Fine $500

If you have ever travelled on an MRT train, you cannot possibly have missed this sign:



As you may already know, or have already paid the price, SMRT has started a “crackdown” on eating and drinking in MRT trains, with SMRT staff patrolling within the carriages and issuing people whom they caught eating or drinking summons.

Offenders may not get the maximum penalty ($500), but a fine would be inevitable.

The trouble is: it seems like the policy is a little taken too far:

According to an article in Straits Times Interactive, Mdm Bibi Zaina Binti Mohamed was fined $30 for eating sweets in the train.
She explained that she had to eat sweets as she felt giddy.
But the enforcement officer was not persuaded.

$30 for sweets, anyone?

So, what are the issues behind this incident?
First, why the sudden enforcement of the no eating / drinking regulation?
Second, what does this incident imply about MRT policy in Singapore?


Why the “crackdown”?

I think there are a few reasons. First, some people have complained about people eating or drinking in trains, and over time, as the complaints accumulated, SMRT felt that the problem had to be arrested. Second, it is the desire to improve our MRT culture, by going back to basics, and making sure that these rules and regulations are obeyed.

The main idea of the “No food and drink” policy was to deter people from dirtying the trains. It is perfectly understandable if SMRT was trying to stop people from eating Mc’s Extra Value Meal or a packet of mixed vegetable rice in the train. But since it is difficult to draw the line between what can and what cannot be eaten, SMRT has little choice but to ban food across the board.

Some might argue, “What’s wrong with eating sweets?” I personally agree. There’s nothing wrong with eating tidbits. But the issue is again where we draw the line. A hard candy or gummy might be alright, but what about biscuits, which leave behind crumbs, or chocolate, which can cause stains and are difficult to clean up.

Besides, what about the wrappers? Considerate people would hold on to them and throw them at a rubbish bin when they alight. Trouble is, not everyone does that, and it's those people who leave their sweet wrappers and whatnot behind that caused this problem.

It may be ridiculous to ban the eating of sweets, but it would be even more ridiculous if SMRT had to come up with something like this:

“LIST OF CANDY ALLOWED IN TRAINS”
Mentos
Tic-Tac
Etc…

Of course, this is exaggerating, but my point is, in any process of policy formation, it is impractical to set specific guidelines on what can and what cannot be eaten, or drank, for that matter.

Despite this reality, it still begs the question: if the issue is whether trains could be left clean, as long as we as citizens exercise personal responsibility, surely this problem wouldn’t have arisen? After all, we have had this policy without such strict enforcement for so many years, and the trains are generally clean.

Besides, other countries don’t make a mountain out of a molehill regarding eating / drinking in trains. In Japan, for example, tidbits in trains are fine, and people are generally responsible enough to keep the trains clean. The only rule they enforce very strictly is not to talk over the phone in the train, and that’s protection for the pregnant and the elderly from the harmful effects of mobile phone radiation (How considerate the Japanese are, don’t you think?).

In addition, it’s perfectly understandable that some forms of food and drink are out of the question, like oily food and sugary drinks, but even plain water is out?

It is therefore somewhat unfair to penalize the majority for the irresponsibility of some minorities.


What this policy implies about our MRT culture is that we still have much to do to improve our MRT culture. The fact that simple rules have to be enforced so strictly means that, we as society still haven’t won the trust of the authorities, and from one another, to be self-responsible. SMRT initiated the clampdown because it does not trust the ability of the people to exercise self-discipline, and some members of society complain because they do not see the same self-discipline being exercised in other members of society.

It also goes to show the simplistic approach SMRT has taken towards improving train conditions, as enforcement officers show no flexibility and compassion in the course of their duties.

Trains have to be kept clean. As long as this objective is meant, why constrain ourselves with so many unnecessary rules and penalties?