Ten caring commuters across seven caring acts were recognised for demonstrating acts of care during their commutes at the Caring Commuter Award ceremony held at One Punggol on 4 November 2023.
Richard Magnus Award for the Outstanding Caring Commuter
2 The “Richard Magnus Award for the Outstanding Caring Commuter” was awarded to Mr Kelvin Tan Jiong Hao and Dr Lee Wei Sheng for their assistance in performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on a commuter who had collapsed at Canberra MRT Station.
Caring Acts |
Winners |
Dr Lee Wei Sheng was on the way to work when he assisted a train station staff to perform chest compressions on a commuter who had collapsed, was not breathing and had no pulse. Mr Kelvin Tan, who was also on his way to work, saw them in action and offered his assistance. |
Dr Lee Wei Sheng |
Mr Kelvin Tan Jiong Hao |
Commendation Award
3 Eight other commuters received the commendation award. The caring acts performed by the winners showcased a broad spectrum of acts of care witnessed on our public transport system:
Caring Acts |
Winners |
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Mdm Jazayah Binte Kamal and a 9-year old commuter, Hopie, were on Bus Service 28 when Hopie overslept and missed her stop. When she found out what happened, Jazayah lent Hopie her phone to call her father. Jazayah also spoke with Hopie’s father and assured him that Hopie was safe and that she would accompany her till the parents arrive to fetch her. |
Mdm Jazayah Binte Kamal |
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A female commuter, Ann, fainted on the bus on the way to Sengkang Bus Interchange. Ms Chikku Babu and Ms Choi Yang Teng offered their help to Ann. Chikku gave Ann some water to drink and called her mother. Together with the bus interchange staff, Chikku and Yang Teng accompanied Ann to the nearby clinic. |
Ms Chikku Babu |
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Ms Choi Yang Teng |
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Mr Sri Ganesh Babu saw a teenage boy on the floor of a MRT train heading towards Clarke Quay MRT Station. The boy appeared to be experiencing a fit and was bleeding from his head as he had knocked his head on a pole. Ganesh helped to comfort the boy and applied tissues on the boy's head to stop the bleeding. Ganesh then carried the boy and his belongings out of the train when the train reached the station. |
Mr Sri Ganesh Babu |
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Ms Tan Zhi Lin offered assistance to an elderly man, who appeared to have dementia at Choa Chu Kang Bus Interchange. When he started panicking, crying and requested to see his daughter-in-law, Zhi Lin sought help from a bus captain and brought the elderly man to the Passenger Service Office (PSO). |
Ms Tan Zhi Lin |
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Ms Noorashikin Binte Sheikh Noordin witnessed a male commuter allegedly harassing a female commuter in a discreet manner in a train heading towards Clementi MRT Station. She shouted at him and alerted the female commuter to what he was allegedly doing. |
Ms Noorashikin Binte Sheikh Noordin |
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Both Mr Craigton Gan Rong and Ms Neo Chai Chin noticed a middle-aged man taking photographs of a female commuter at Clementi MRT Station. The man tried to run away when they approached him. Craigton managed to grab hold of the man by the arm and escorted him to the Passenger Service Centre. |
Mr Craigton Gan Rong |
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Ms Neo Chai Chin |
Caring Commuter Award 2023
4 The Caring Commuter Award was first launched in 2019 to recognise public transport commuters who have demonstrated acts of care during their daily commute. The award aims to generate greater awareness and encourage the involvement of the whole community to practise and promote caring behaviour. More information on past winners can be found on https://www.caringcommuters.gov.sg/awards
5 This year, the Caring SG Commuters Committee called for nominations between April and June 2023, and received a record number of 138 nominations from both members of public and Public Transport Operators. The nominations were evaluated based on criteria such as the impact of the act of care to the person being assisted, the effort that was undertaken by the caring commuter, and the situation at hand.
6 The Caring Commuter Award ceremony was organised as part of the Caring Commuter Week[1] organised by Caring SG Commuters Committee. Mr Chee Hong Tat, Acting Minister for Transport and Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Finance, was the Guest-of-Honour at the event and presented the trophies and certificates to the winners. Mr Baey Yam Keng, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Ministry of Transport & Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment; and Ms Janet Ang, Chairperson of the Public Transport Council and Caring SG Commuters Committee, were also present at the event.
About Caring SG Commuters Movement
The Caring SG Commuters movement first began in August 2017 as a national culture-building movement to foster a caring commuting culture in Singapore. Members of the public are invited to visit the Caring SG Commuters Portal to find out more about Caring SG Commuters initiatives and how they can be involved.
[1] Caring Commuter Week was held in conjunction with the Public Transport Workers’ Appreciation Day event for the second time.