Tuesday, September 29, 2009

SINGAPORE SNIPPETS

ST PHOTO: ASHLEIGH SIM


A group of 250 seniors were treated to a free shopping trip at the NTUC Fairprice supermarket in Jurong on Sunday. Volunteers from the Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC) and Moral Neighbourhood Link, a voluntary welfare organisation that focuses on elder care were on hand to help the seniors and share tips on how to check for expiry dates and nutritional content on food items.

On the same day, the CDAC concluded a month-long rice donation drive with about 87,000kg of grain collected. The rice will be distributed to 4,000 needy families and senior citizens.

With nearly half of the pedestrian fatalities coming from the over-60 age group, the Singapore government will be introducing longer time at selected pedestrian crossings, mostly in the homelands or areas with a large concentration of elderly people. These 'Green Man Plus' crossings allow for an extra 17 seconds at a 4-lane crossing, and 21 seconds for a six-lane crossing.

All a senior citizen has to do is to tap his ez-link concession card on the special card-reader to activate the Green Man Plus. This will give him more time to cross the road safely.

The Green Man Plus idea would be great for the pedestrian crossing in front of Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) along Jalan Ampang. You have only 22 seconds to cross this busy 8-lane road. And you had better pray that motorists give you right of way as some don't bother to stop.

1 comment:

AT said...

It is a great idea to give extra time for senior citizens at pedestrain crossings. You are right, about time our government implement this idea.