2025 Road Safety Award

Road.SG Interview

1. What first inspired you to take an active role in promoting road safety?

Like some of your viewers, I too have lost friends and loved ones to traffic accidents, and regardless of how we compartmentalize things, the pain and the memories will never disappear.

In addition, I just became a dad not too long ago and I guess that has further shaped my perspective on life.

I honestly don’t think I play an active enough role in promoting road safety and I’m obviously not without flaws; having made many mistakes before in the past. So it’s still an active and ongoing process to constantly remind myself to take better precautions, have a stronger sense of responsibility, and whenever possible, to share whatever positive vibes and messages I could.

In my humble opinion, many incidents could be prevented or avoided, if more is done to promote safety. I’m not talking about government institutions like the LTA, they’re already doing a great job, but of course more could be done… I’m talking about how businesses and literally anyone with a social media account.

2. What do you think is the most overlooked road safety issue in Singapore today?

I’m not sure what the statistics are, but as a fellow road user myself and based on what I notice and witness on the roads, I’ll hazard a guess to say ‘sense of entitlement’ and ‘situational awareness’.

With regards to ‘sense of entitlement’, I think we could all learn to be a little more patient and a little more gracious. I got my driver’s licence in Canada at 16, when I was still in high school, and one of the things I’ve noticed is that there is no harm in spreading a little graciousness. Something we could adopt when it comes to driving or riding on the roads for example, is to allow for vehicles to take-turns when there is a bottle neck situation. Meaning to say, if there are road works or a situation where multiple lanes need to merge into fewer lanes, drivers and riders simply go one-by-one, so one vehicle from the left, followed by one vehicle from the right, instead of the fighting-to-squeeze-ahead scenario we often see in this part of the world. Sure, everyone is eager to get to their destination, but from what I understand, adopting such a method actually streamlines things and helps reduce accidents.

With regards to ‘situational awareness’, I believe one of the biggest reason why accidents occur stems from distractions. This could be due to the driver or rider responding to text messages on their phones, glancing over at their GPS navigation, changing the music, or being in an emotional state that causes them to lose focus, or making them want to drive or ride faster. In fact, I have personally witnessed multiple times, drivers scrolling through TikTok or Instagram while driving.

It’s also pretty evident that there are still a lot of road users who are not checking their blind spots when switching lanes or making a turn; in fact, adding onto that, road users who don’t use their turn signals.

I firmly believe that just by being more calm and gracious, as well as being focused and aware of our surroundings and signalling our intentions early, could help improve road safety for all users.

3. Do you believe KOLs and influencers have a responsibility in shaping safer road habits? Why?

Absolutely! While I personally don’t see myself as a KOL or influencer, simply because I don’t have a large following, I do believe that anyone who posts content online, or even comments publicly, has a social and civic responsibility to share the right message to their followers, friends and family.

Take for example riding gear. As a rider myself, I make it a point to never wear flip-flops or sandals when I ride. In fact, whenever possible, we should be wearing proper gear such as a riding jacket, riding trousers, gloves and shoes. While such gear isn’t required by the law, every time we post a photo or a video on social media, we send a positive image and as a result, a positive message. Unlike in the past, it isn’t cool to ride with just t-shirts and jeans anymore.

In fact, you don’t need a social media following to spread positive vibes and safety messages. As a driver or rider, if a vehicle were to giveaway to you, just put your hand up and wave a thanks. This small gesture costs absolutely nothing, but it’s a really nice gesture that may put a smile on someone else’s face, or better yet, may influence that person to start doing the same!

4. What advice would you give to riders / drivers / users out there?

Never take things for granted. Just because you are a safe, cautious and defensive driver or rider, doesn’t mean other road users are.

Also, to try to be conscientious about safety. I’m just as guilty as the next guy, dealing with the normal everyday issues such as rushing to get somewhere on time, or feeling tired after a long day at work, or feeling lazy to put on riding gear because it’s crazy hot… At the end of the day, all of us want to get to our destination safely and most importantly, we want to get home to our family safely.

5. What do you hope to see change in road user behavior over the next 5–10 years?

Definitely hope to see the mannerisms of drivers and riders improve. As I mentioned before, I firmly believe that the relatively simple act of being courteous and gracious, can go a long way in helping improve road safety; and not just for roads with cars, bikes, busses and trucks, but also for park connectors, side walks, pedestrian crossings, even at the parking lots.

That, and maybe more people using their turn signals!

6. How do you think recognition like the ROADS Awards helps amplify road safety advocacy?

Anytime there is a buzz, there will be awareness. Given how you guys have been pushing hard toward creating a continual buzz on matters related to road safety, I reckon it’ll continue to do good for the community as a whole.

On that note, thank you Road.SG for creating the ROADS Awards!

• Vote HERE (Closing Date 8th August 2025)