SMRT station manager helps young fan, 7, catch new 7th-gen train at Bugis, gifts him souvenir bag

Vanessa Wong and her son, Z, were at Bugis MRT station on Jun. 29 to experience a new Alstom Movia R151 train.

These are the seventh-generation trains that were rolled out on the North-South and East-West Lines in June.

"We had set out just hoping to be able to catch the R151 but ended up with so much more," said Wong.

And it's all thanks to one station manager, Kumar.

The mother and her 7-year-old son approached a station staff to enquire about the location of the new train.

Kumar overheard them and immediately asked if it's for Wong's son.

"When I told him how much Z loves MRT trains and that he has been trying to board a R151, Mr Kumar told us to give him some time to make some calls to check," Wong said.

The pair was lucky because one R151 was at Kembangan station, which was six stops away from Bugis station.

Going above and beyond

Kumar then told the mother and son pair to wait around the control station and offered to bring them down to to the platform once the train arrived.

But that's not all.

While Wong and her son were waiting, Kumar returned with a tote bag of SMRT souvenirs for Z.

"Oh my heart. Talk about going above and beyond!!" Wong said.

The station manager also engaged the boy in conversation about trains and tunnels in the Circle Line, Thomson-East Coast Line, and Downtown Line.

When the R151 was approaching Bugis station, Kumar brought Wong and her son down to the platform and advised them to wait at end so that they could have a special view of the train as it entered the station.

The experience truly left an impression on Z who could not stop talking about his "best day ever" on the way home, said Wong.

"Mr Kumar, I don't know if you will ever know what a core memory you created for Z but thank you from the bottom of our hearts."

BRB gonna cry in a corner now.

Top cover credit: @iwantabeagle/Instagram, LTA.