Every day, for 40 minutes, I stand on the corner of two roads in Singapore, hoping the bus will make its round soon. Unfortunately, this extensive wait time is not foreign to me. In fact, every Sunday is exactly the same — the busiest day for Singapore and its public transit system.

Once aboard bus 171, I’m pressed against the windshield by couples, children and middle-aged Malaysian women with purses, shopping bags and strollers. Most of these people are headed to Orchard Road, a two-kilometer hub for retail and entertainment. Nearly half an hour passes before the driver rolls up to my stop. In eight hours, I repeat the same process, only this time in the opposite direction.

Being such a congested country has its major downfalls, and commute time is certainly one of them. In a country full of people who value time and speed, this is a particularly frustrating phenomenon. Nonetheless, Singapore’s small size means almost all parts of the country can be reached in an hour or less, including typical traffic jams and frequent halts for pedestrians.

Though the most economical choice, taking the bus is merely one of several options for commuters. Most routes will cost you less than 1 Singapore dollar, or roughly 75 cents. Singaporeans also regard this system, known as SBS Transit, as the most far-reaching in the nation. With a fleet of more than 3,000 buses and hundreds of terminals, you can reach every corner for very cheap.

But even if it is inexpensive and practical, SBS seems to be the most confusing of all. While there are terminals every quarter of a mile away from one another, buses do not stop at every terminal they pass. Sure, there are maps meant to guide those who are unfamiliar with a particular route. Yet foreigners are bound to get lost without asking for directions.

Instead, non-locals are much more interested in using Singapore’s highly coveted and easily accessible SMRT, a rapid transit railway system with 113 stations in operation. According to the annual Singapore Land Transport Statistics for 2013, more than 2.5 million people use the SMRT on an average day. This is nearly half the population of this country.

Each of the SMRT’s five lines connect in some way or another. While convenient for short trips, especially when one does not have the time to wait for the bus, it is a little more costly, ranging upwards of $2 per trip. Unlike the bus system, however, the SMRT does not reach the entire island.

Singapore has big plans for the SMRT. Most of the construction you see throughout the country has something to do with this railway. Three new lines are in planning, the last being 2030’s Cross Island Line, which will horizontally pass through the entire nation.

The country also has taxis, which are overpriced disasters on wheels. Singapore’s taxi drivers have been informally deemed some of the worst in the entire world. You flag down a driver only for him to tell you he is no longer servicing the area you would like to reach. Sometimes he’ll use the excuse, “I’m headed home for the night and am not going that direction.”

When you finally manage to pinpoint a driver, chances are he will ask you how to get there. He might pretend as though he has never heard of your destination and sometimes takes the scenic route on purpose to overcharge you. Please remember all taxi drivers in Singapore are government-approved natives who have lived in this country from birth. They know every nook and cranny, whether they admit it or not.

One thing everyone seems to hate is the nightly curfew for public transport. Bus terminals and SMRT stations shut down around midnight, and taxi fares skyrocket. This is simply Singapore’s way of reducing crime, and, according to locals, has proven to be quite effective during the last few years. For everyone who has things to do, such as study at the library, this is exceptionally infuriating.

As someone from Kentucky, I find the entire system completely overwhelming. Though the system is extremely cramped and slow, you have to admit it is quite impressive how the country has managed to connect everything together. I’m even more impressed that I have managed to learn my way around this place.

Zachary Gipson is a senior majoring in economics and linguistics. He is striving to fit in with the fast-paced locals of Singapore. To chat about life abroad, shoot him an email at ztgipson@syr.edu.

Published on April 6, 2015 at 11:12 pm