Haze in Singapore - Part 1

For the past few days, Singapore was hit by haze resulting from forest fire in Sumatra Indonesia with the PSI (Pollution Standard Index) hitting as high as 400 on 21 Jun 13. This was hazardous level.  Ardon and I happened to go out on that day.  I had to wear sunglass so that my eyes would not be hurt by the smoke.  We did not wear an N95 mask because we did not have one.  Luckily, none of us fall sick.

With the PSI at such high levels for days, we had no choice but to close all the windows and doors.  We tried to switch on the air-conditioner only when the heat was too unbearable because we did not want to incur a high electricity bill. We also did not want the air-conditioners to get damaged from overuse. Luckily we also had two water based air-purifiers that we could use to clean the air in our home and get rid of the smoky smell indoor.

We were so happy yesterday to see that the PSI had fallen to below 100.  However, we were warned by the news caster that this was temporary.  

I wanted to bring the kids to some places this June holiday but we could not go anywhere outdoor because of the haze.  We can only go to shopping malls and other indoor places.  Clothes that were hung outside to dry also had a burnt smell.  Very fed up too.

Cameras

My family did not own any camera when we were young.  So we did not have many childhood pictures.  Most of the pictures we had were taken by other people who had cameras. Cameras were expensive then and my parents probably feel it was not necessary to buy one.

I bought my own camera when I started working in the 1990s. It cost me about $300. The camera I bought required photographic film to capture the image. The photographic film usually came in rolls that can take up to 12, 24 or 36 pictures. We had to finish using the whole roll of film before we could get the pictures develop by the photo shop or else it would be wasteful.  

Now at the price of $100+, you can get a decent digital camera with video recording function.  We can view the images on the camera's LCD screen once we capture it to see if it turned out well.  We can edit the pictures ourselves, display them on a digital photo frame so that we do not need many photo frames to display many different pictures. We can save the pictures in a SD  card, flash drive, our computer, CD or even online.  This means fewer physical storage space as compared to putting pictures in photo albums. We can print out the pictures using a printer when we need them. This is especially useful when the children's schools want their photos for some class activities; we do not need to "sacrifice" any photos for that purpose.  

When you compare the prices of cameras then and now, you can now buy a lower priced cameras with better functions and quality.  So, in actual fact, prices of cameras had gone down. 

Public Transport Then and Now - Buses and MRT

Bus services were not so frequent in the 1980s.  On top of that, all buses were non air-conditioned.  On hot days, when the buses stopped for passengers to board and alight, and at traffic lights, the heat could be unbearable if there was no wind.  On rainy days, it was even worse! If we closed all the windows in the bus, it would be very warm and stuffy especially if the bus was very crowded. If we did not close the windows, you would get rain splashing into the bus.

In the past, we had to bring enough coins to take a bus.  For students, we had the student bus card to enjoy concessionary bus fare. We could also purchase the bus stamp from the bus company at $12 or $15  to enjoy unlimited rides for that month. I used to think how nice it could be if we could use the bus card even as adults so that we do not need to bring so many coins. My friend said that was not possible.

When the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) started operation in 1987, we started to use a fare card when taking the MRT.  They also came up with a stored value fare card that could be used on MRT trains. Later on, SBS and Trans Island added the machines so that we could use the stored value fare card on the buses. This fare card system enabled passengers to enjoy some rebates when switching between MRT and buses or switching between a few buses during a journey. Passengers just need to slot the card into the ticket machine, press the correct bus fare amount and a bus ticket would come out. 

Now, the stored value fare card is replaced by the ez-link card which is also a cash card. We just need to tap on the machine when boarding the bus and tap another time when alighting.  Then the correct bus fare will be deducted from the ez-link card. No bus ticket will be issued. We no longer have to remember the correct bus fare to various places.  We no longer have to worry about paying less than the correct amount of bus fare and get penalised by the bus ticket inspector. Most importantly, we no longer need to carry many coins to take buses.  This system turned out even better than what I could have hoped for. The only thing we need to remember, of course, is to top up the ez-link card when it is low in value.  Passengers can still pay for their bus fare by using coins and dollar notes if they forget to bring the ez-link card or when their ez-link card have negative value. 

Students are now issued a student smart card which acts as an ez-link card to enjoy concessionary bus fare.  This smart card and ez-link card can also be used for admission into public swimming pools etc.

Now, all the public buses are air-conditioned. Bus services are more frequent. Of course during peak hours, there will still be delays due to traffic conditions. There are now more MRT routes to many parts of Singapore. Public buses and MRTs are still very crowded during peak hours. That is one problem that nobody has been able to fully resolve.