SMRT lodges police report against man who filmed himself drinking water on S'pore MRT

A police report has been lodged against a man who filmed himself challenging the rules on the MRT in Singapore by blatantly drinking plain water next to a "No Drinking" sign.

The incident appeared to have taken place onboard a train on the East West Line.

Lam Sheau Kai, president of SMRT Trains, which operates the East West Line, told Mothership that SMRT has lodged a police report on the matter.

"We were alerted to a video showing a man drinking on a train on the East-West line. Consumption of food and drinks is strictly prohibited on trains under the Rapid Transit System (RTS) regulations," said Lam.

Lam said SMRT takes such irresponsible behaviour seriously.

"We strongly encourage commuters who witness similar incidents to report them to our staff immediately," he added.

Background

A video of the man's act gained traction after it was shared to social media on Sep. 21.

He said in Mandarin: "Everyone knows that you can't drink water on Singapore MRT trains, but today let's do a challenge where I'll drink water on the MRT".

Sometime after boarding the train, he man pointed at the "No Drinking" sign displayed on the wall, and looked around him before drinking some water.

Once done, he gave a thumbs up to the camera.

The act stirred up debate online, with some questioning if his actions were against the law, while others criticised him for not respecting Singapore's public transport rules.

Top image from trulysglah/Instagram & SMRT/Facebook