Given the parsimony of information provided by SMRT - they even declined to confirm the nationality of the bus driver - one can think of several possibilities:
He stepped on the accelerator instead of the brakes;
The tyres were bald, and wheels lost traction;
Bus was travelling too fast to make the 90-degree turn;
Brake line was cut due to sabotage by disgruntled employee (skid marks on the road make this a highly dubious scenario);
F-1 is hiring.
Sheer speculation of course, fuelled by lack of disclosure and trust in public institutions.
Quick on the defensive, Kalai Natarajan, Vice President of Corporate and Marketing Communications at SMRT covered all the standard bases: "SMRT has a fleet of 1,137 buses, which undergo strict and thorough preventative maintenance checks. These include mandatory LTA inspection repair, as well as predictive and corrective maintenance of components such as braking and steering mechanisms. The bus involved in this morning's accident was last maintained on June 21, and was given a clean bill of health. No brake or steering related problems were noted during the inspection."
One passenger, trapped in the bus, was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics, and his body had to be extracted from the mangled bus.
Another death of an individual by a negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide. Not to worry, there's a new precedent, fine is $10,000.
Don't waste money on an independent Committee of Inquiry to look into the circumstances surrounding the accident, and to recommend improvements to existing systems, protocols and processes. The outcome is a foregone conclusion. The "buck stops here" sign is definitely not on the CEO's desk. Zhang Kun may insist his brakes failed, but the system will beg to differ.
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My guess is that the PRC driver may have done double shift or double jobs to earn more money to pay back the hefty loan he took to come here to work. The fatigue from over work must have made him miss the sharp turning into Dairy Farm Road.
ReplyDeleteThey claimed he worked a standard 8.5 hrs shift with a full 8 hr rest prior day.
DeleteIt could be both, driver worked double shifts and faulty brakes. We will never know, would we?
DeleteApart from the obvious tragedy the real issue is the lack of transparency and information every time something like this happens. They are more concerned with their image. The state-paid hack who condemned the bloggers for rumour mongering should ask himself what is it that fuelled speculation and rumours.
ReplyDeleteWhy? Why? Why? Because the culprit if it is a Singaporean, MIW's mouthpiece, The State Times will boldly proclaimed it.
DeleteThe first scenario seems most likely.
ReplyDeleteWonder if there were other car drivers with camera who captured the entire episode that day.
The headlines already decided it - driver claimed.
ReplyDeleteInstead of - brake failure suspected.
Immigration Department audits reveal large-scale fraud of visa system by Indian students and workers.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-22/immigration-audits-reveal-large-scale-visa-fraud/4833710
Maybe the driver did not have 8hr of rest due to room mate waking him up when they came back from their late shift.
ReplyDeleteOr he could be moon-lighting in another job to make ends meet. I have seen this security guard always literally sleeping on the job at his counter as he's doing two jobs at two different places.
ReplyDeleteFor a start, all public buses should be fitted with a front camera and equipped with GPS device that relays driving parameters to a LTA central computer and this should be considered for other heavy vehicles as well.
ReplyDeleteAbout time LTA use a tiny bit of the Billions collected to improve safety.
I believe all buses have been fitted with GPS devices which relays position coordinates and speed to a central system. Otherwise software like Google maps on smartphones, the SBS Transit Iris app, plus bus stops with panels showing arrival times; will not be able to predict bus arrival times.
DeleteThe data is there, but the truth may be fudged.
The problem is that SMRT is treated like a private company when it comes to profit making while it is treated like a govt-owned company when it comes to accountability.
ReplyDeleteCan we ever get to the bottom of it when it comes to integrity ?
Heads will roll if there is enough integrity.
DeleteNever mind what PM had just said, so who wants to tell the truth ?
Life has become cheap in SG when you're a lesser mortal.
ReplyDeleteFrom the explanation given by the driver, it was likely that he had stepped on the accelerator pedal instead of the brake pedal.
ReplyDeleteHow did you arrive at that? Is is because the oil in "jia you" was mistaken for petrol fluid instead of brake oil?
Delete"One passenger, trapped in the bus, was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics, and his body had to be extracted from the mangled bus."
ReplyDeleteHi Tattler,
Sg's fast climbing mortality curve is catching up with its terminally falling TFR curve. Likely they will intersect each other faster than projected and thereafter on a diverging trajectory.
This death has just added further "petrol" to the rate of rise of the mortality rate in Sg.
Certainly, the spates of several sudden death recently have just further "fuelled the acceleration" towards the onset of more deaths than births in Sg in the near future. Wither Sg?
Sane Native Singaporeans will not and shud not create more to suffer in Sin.
ReplyDeleteGetting away from Sin is the only salvation, not prolonging by extending family to Sin.
I guess the driver will get the stick. It's the case all along - the multiple SAF training deaths, Mas Selamat escape, dengue deaths, train breakdowns, etc - those at the top seem to have unbreakable rice bowls, like with the hens, cows, can't sings, clown princes, what do you thinks. This is Meritocracy! The buck never stops with them, so Mediocrity is perpetuated.
ReplyDeleteThe front line staff always gets the stick & the boot.
ReplyDeleteIts never about process, equipment. It is always the staff that failed to follow procedures.
With the demand for fast and frequent service from public transport and the shortage of new buses, operators will push the envelope.
How? well, they will tell the drivers to observe safety rules at all costs.. at the same time, they will also place targets to get to the next stop within a certain time.
All front line service staff face these challenges.
Its alright, but the culture of the workplace needs to be looked into.. we cannot always blame it on employee.
There may be tons of circulars, briefings, notices and reminders... ultimately its process and culture.
Is dairy farm road not daisy farm road
ReplyDelete