STOP IN THE NAME OF SAFETY: There have been some close shaves involving people who talk on their mobile phones while crossing the road, says traffic warden Joseph Roy. -- ST PHOTO: SAMUEL HE
IF YOU are walking down Scotts Road and hear a whistle, don't assume that someone's trying to get fresh with you. It could very well be traffic warden Joseph Roy and his whistle.
Yes, you read that right. There are traffic wardens there now, playing peacemaker between the flow of pedestrians and the stream of vehicles heading for the carparks of buildings such as Far East Plaza and Grand Hyatt Hotel.
Mr Roy, 59, is a familiar figure to shoppers and motorists who frequent the small road between those two buildings.
Come rain or shine, his shrill whistle can be heard reverberating incessantly in the air as he uses animated gestures to regulate the traffic flow there.
He is not alone. His colleague, Mr Subramaniam, also manages the traffic situation beside him. Both of them have been hired jointly by the management corporations of Far East Plaza and Grand Hyatt Hotel.
Dressed in blue uniforms, they are at work from 1 to 8pm every day.
'The traffic wardens are hired to facilitate smooth traffic control and pedestrian safety,' says a spokesman for the management corporation of Far East Plaza.
The companies hired the wardens to reduce traffic congestion in that area and to resolve issues on whether the motorists or the pedestrians have the right of way.
Mr Roy, who gets one day off a week and earns a monthly salary of $1,200, says traffic is especially heavy when the lunch and evening crowds arrive, and during school or public holidays.
The move has been applauded by both motorists and pedestrians.
'With the traffic warden present, I usually have to wait three to four minutes before I can pass. But I think it is reasonable. Without the traffic warden, who decides whether the motorists or the pedestrians have the right of way?' says taxi-driver Chan Cheng Leong, 45.
Mr Palani Appan, 29, a shift manager at the 7-Eleven outlet in Far East Plaza feels that, without the traffic wardens, cars have the upper hand.
'The cars often zoom pass recklessly. Perhaps the traffic warden could alternate the right of way between the motorists and the pedestrians, and allocate equal time to both,' he suggests.
But Mr Roy has his own method. 'I don't do it by counting, let's say, 10 seconds, and then let the other party cross. Instead, I judge the distance between the oncoming vehicle and the nearest pedestrian. I will let the nearer one pass as it is safer. There's no logic to abide by a rigid timeframe.'
He says no accidents have occurred in the five months that he has worked there, though there have been close shaves.
'Some people have the habit of talking on their mobile phones while crossing the road. If I had not kept a close eye on the motorists, some accidents might have happened,' he says.
When asked if the job is a tough one, he just shrugs and laughs before saying: 'It's so hot nowadays, I get dark and tanned.
'But I don't mind, I enjoy my job so much so that I even recognise the same auntie and uncle behind the wheels. I can remember even their cars and licence plate numbers.'
This article was first published in The Straits Times on June 14, 2008.
