Around 20,000 thank-you cards penned by commuters for public transport workers

      The inaugural Public Transport Workers’ Appreciation Day, jointly organised by the Land Transport Authority (LTA), the National Transport Workers’ Union (NTWU) and the four public transport operators^[1], was held today to recognise and celebrate our 22,000 public transport workers, who play an important part in commuters’ travel experience. 

Appreciating Our Unsung Heroes of Public Transport

2     Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Transport, Mr Khaw Boon Wan visited the public carnival at Bedok Town Square, where he unveiled a series of publicity collaterals to encourage commuters to show their understanding, respect and appreciation towards public transport workers who work tirelessly daily.

3     At the carnival, members of the public learnt about the different public transport vocations through activity booths and exhibition panels. Visitors to the Appreciation Wall were encouraged to pin messages and appreciation cards for the workers. Before the event, around 20,000 thank-you cards were penned by students and commuters across Singapore, in a campaign organised jointly by the LTA and the Singapore Kindness Movement. These hand-written cards will subsequently be distributed to all public transport workers.

Enhanced Welfare, Improved Facilities

4     As part of our continuing effort to improve the welfare and working conditions of public transport workers, LTA and NTWU have been working closely with the operators.  For example, the rail operators have installed condition monitoring instruments which make it easier and faster for the maintenance crew to detect problems. The bus operators have also provided more comfortable staff canteens, lounges and toilets for dedicated use by the bus crew at the new and upgraded bus depots and interchanges.

5     Overall, career progression and training opportunities for our public transport workers have also been enhanced. They can now look forward to more opportunities and greater career advancements in the industry. With the launch of the Singapore Bus Academy and Singapore Rail Academy under the industry manpower development frameworks, public transport workers will be able to significantly raise their capability level, and provide better services to the public. To date, more than 1,600 public transport workers have already benefited from the courses introduced by the two academies.

6     Separately, to attract school leavers to join the public transport industry, the transition process from schools to the workplace has been eased through programmes like the Enhanced Internship Programme with the public bus operators for Institute of Technical Education students, and the Career Onboarding for Railway Engineers (CORE) programme, which provides fundamental knowledge in the planning and design of rail systems.

7     “I encourage our commuters to take active steps in showing appreciation to all these hardworking individuals every day – not just today. Even a simple smile can make a big difference,” said Minister Khaw.