SINGAPORE — Lining up in queues is, unfortunately, not a universal trait, and some visitors to Singapore don’t always have a “concept of a queue,” one Reddit user posted.
u/millyforest wrote on Wednesday (Jan 11) that she had been lining up on the platform of the MRT “when a tourist from a neighbouring SE Asian country came up from behind and asked for directions.” She obligingly helped the tourist who asked for directions. Afterwards, however, the tourist “promptly cut the queue and went ahead of me to board the train.”
“Wow, that sucked and I instantly regretted helping her (the tourist). Do these people genuinely not understand the concept of queuing? Or are they just being self-centred and kiasu?” she asked on r/Singapore.
Netizens commenting on her post acknowledged that people may not always know what it means to line up, but it’s perfectly okay to tell them what it means to wait in line.
One Reddit user wrote, “Have had too many aunties and uncles cutting queue right in front of me at the food court, ntuc checkout, and even for bus and mrt that nowadays I don’t give face anymore. I’ll say straight out and very loudly “AUNTY DONT CUT QUEUE. THE QUEUE STARTS THERE”. they’ll always be embarrassed and move away.”
The post owner wrote that she had been surprised and caught off guard by the queue jumping, adding that she’ll “take your advice and say something the next time this happens.”
“I don’t think you will see people queuing up nicely to board the train In many countries and not just that, our locals are also far from perfect. Just take it that you did a good deed rather than dwell on the negativity,” another Reddit user chimed in.
The Reddit user later thanked netizens for their input, writing, “Thanks for some of the helpful responses. I got the answer to my key question and now know that queuing culture may indeed not be the norm for many localities. Yes I was caught off-guard this time and will speak up for future encounters. There are too many responses to reply to individually, but thank you for chiming in.”
/TISG