SINGAPORE: The taxi driver behind me unleashed a barrage of honks – once, twice, three times, each one more urgent than the last.
I started to get nervous, my heart rate quickening, as I tried to navigate across lanes to the extreme right in order to make a turn at the upcoming junction. It was obvious that the driver behind me wanted me to get a move on.
What he did not see was that there was another car before mine, signalling that it was also filtering to the right and I was waiting for it to go.
The “delay” we caused to the driver behind us was at most 10 seconds, there really wasn’t a need for him to sound his horn impatiently. If I had been pressured by the driver to change lanes quickly, there would have been a risk of an accident with the car in front.
Unfortunately, this unpleasant behaviour is not uncommon on Singapore’s roads.
Having to ferry my children to school and a job that has me travelling frequently around Singapore, I spend a lot of time on the road.
From drivers who refuse to give way to signalling cars to those who speed up to overtake in merging lanes and change lanes recklessly, it can sure feel like Singapore has many impatient and inconsiderate drivers.
It seems I’m not alone in feeling this way.
In parliament on Tuesday (May 7), several Members of Parliament (MPs) raised questions about the road safety landscape in Singapore, including whether there was a need for a review of existing penalties.
