Bus commuters can expect the Expected Time of Arrival (ETA) system for buses to be mostly available by Wednesday (Jan 28) morning, although more time is now required for a full restoration, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA). In an update issued on Tuesday evening, the transport regulator said that its engineers and contractors have completed the manual updating of firmware for the 3,000 buses that were identified last week. «The availability of bus arrival timings will be restored to 85 per cent by tomorrow morning,» said LTA. The authority added that bus services will continue to operate as usual. System to be fully restored next week: LTAThe root cause, a memory cache build-up in the on-board system of some buses, had disrupted data transmissions between on-board bus systems and the central ETA processing servers. According to LTA, this led to the issue of missing bus arrival timings. 

Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan will make a two-day visit to the Philippines from Wednesday (Jan 28) to attend an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) retreat for foreign ministers and related meetings. In a statement on Tuesday, Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said the visit, from Jan 28 to 29, is at the invitation of the Philippines Secretary of Foreign Affairs Theresa Lazaro. Apart from the foreign ministers' retreat, Dr Balakrishnan will also attend the informal consultation on the implementation of the Asean Five-Point Consensus, and the extended informal consultation on the consensus. The consensus was issued by Asean leaders following their meeting in April 2021. It calls for the immediate cessation of violence in Myanmar; constructive dialogue to seek a peaceful solution; the appointment of a special envoy to facilitate mediation of the dialogue process; humanitarian assistance; and visits by the special envoy to meet with parties in the ongoing Myanmar conflict. 

A brand of biscuits meant for babies aged 10 months and above is being recalled after the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) was informed of the potential presence of foreign matter in the form of soft plastic and/or paper pieces in the biscuits. Nestle Singapore, the importer of the affected product — Gerber's arrowroot biscuits — has been directed to recall the implicated product, the agency said in a news release on Tuesday (Jan 27). Three batches of the USA-made product are being recalled. Product nameBatch numberPackaging sizeExpiry dateGerber arrowroot biscuits5209565504155gOct 27, 2026Gerber arrowroot biscuits5252565505155gDec 9, 2026Gerber arrowroot biscuits5259565505155gDec 16, 2026SFA said that foods known to unsafe for consumption should not be sold, adding that consumers who have purchased the implicated products are advised not to feed it to their children.

Youngsters have often received flak from older generations for being perceived as wilting under pressure easily, but Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong was impressed with one student’s response at being part of the «strawberry generation». It refers to those born from 1990s onwards, and is labelled as such due to the perception that they are easy bruised, entitled and pampered. During the Institute of Policy Studies’ (IPS) annual Singapore Perspective conference at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre on Monday (Jan 26), IPS director Janadas Devan, who acted as the moderator in a dialogue with DPM Gan, gave the label to students in the audience.«Don’t you want to object to a 'strawberry generation' label put on you?» DPM Gan then asked one of the students. To his surprise, Darren, who introduced himself as a Nanyang Polytechnic student, simply replied: «No, it doesn’t bother me.»«The self-confidence,» said the impressed DPM Gan to Janadas. «This is our hope for the future». Darren had asked DPM Gan on how the Government can engage foreigners without sidelining Singaporeans. 

Steven Pang Chee Wee and Yip Wei Kiat have been appointed Singapore's ambassador to Cambodia and high commissioner to Brunei respectively, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) announced on Tuesday (Jan 27).Pang, who previously headed the ministry's consular directorate, has served in various appointments since joining MFA in 1999.He was formerly Singapore's consul-general in China's Chengdu from 2017 to 2019, and had also served as Singapore's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations' office in Geneva.A graduate of The University of Tokyo, Pang is married to Lynn Cha Siew Yen. They have one daughter.

PropertyLimBrothers chief executive Melvin Lim's name has been removed from the website of the real estate agency, amid allegations of adultery which surfaced over the weekend.Lim, 45, is the co-founder of the agency — under the PropNex umbrella — along with Adrian Lim, 48.Allegations that Melvin — said to be married with four children — is having an affair with a colleague began circulating online on Sunday (Jan 25).Videos of him leaving an office unit with another woman, alleged to be in a «senior management role», went viral on social media. She is apparently an influencer and is married, according to the contents of an email received by AsiaOne on Sunday.Video of alleged affair recorded in office unitVideos circulating on social media platforms and posted to Reddit were allegedly recorded from the office unit facing Melvin's office. Moaning could be heard in the clip, as the people behind the video attempt to get closer to the source of the sound.

The posting results for the 2026 Joint Admissions Exercise (JAE) will be released at 9am on Feb 3.Applicants can obtain their posting results through the JAE website or short message service (SMS).Those posted to a junior college (JC) or Millenia Institute (MI) should report to their posted institutions on Feb 4 morning.These students may refer to their posted institutions' websites for additional information such as the reporting details and purchase of uniforms. The Ministry of Education (MOE) also advised those who are unable to report to their posted institution on the first day of school for valid reasons should contact the institution they are posted to to reserve their places.Applicants posted to polytechnics or Institutes of Education (ITE) will receive their enrolment details via email by end-February 2026 and Feb 3 respectively.In its statement on Tuesday (Jan 27), MOE also advised those who wish to seek a transfer to JC/MI course to appeal to the institution directly.

From Feb 1, medical qualifications from eight more overseas schools will be recognised in Singapore, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Singapore Medical Council (SMC) in a joint statement on Tuesday (Jan 27). «The additions will allow Singapore to better meet the growing demand for doctors as our population ages,» the agencies said. The newly recognised schools are: Adelaide University, College of Health in AustraliaManipal Academy of Higher Educaation, Kasturba Medical College in IndiaUniversity of Galway, School of Medicine in IrelandUniversiti Sains Malaysia, School of Medical Sciences in MalaysiaThe Aga Khan University Medical College in PakistanTsinghua University, School of Medicine in ChinaCity St George’s, University of London, School of Health & Medicinal Sciences in BritainUniversity of Exeter, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences in BritainThis addition brings the total number of recognised overseas medical schools from 112 to 120. 

Singapore's public transport network is «horsing up» for the Chinese New Year with specially-decorated trains, buses and MRT stations. This is a collaboration between the Land Transport Authority (LTA), the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre, as well as public transport operators SBS Transit, SMRT, Tower Transit Singapore and Go-Ahead Singapore.From Tuesday (Jan 27) to Mar 3, selected trains on all six rail lines — Circle Line, Downtown Line, East-West Line, North-East Line, North-South Line and Thomson-East Coast Line — as well as bus services 51, 67, 70, 78, 87, 143, 183, 187 and 960 will feature these decorations.Ang Mo Kio, Bedok, Bukit Panjang, Downtown, Outram Park, Punggol, Serangoon and Shenton Way MRT stations will also be similarly decorated.The Chinese New Year-themed decorations feature colourful horse illustrations, festive lanterns, traditional Chinese New Year Yu Sheng and auspicious greetings.«The introduction of themed public transport is part of LTA's continued efforts to enliven the commuting experience during festive seasons and to foster a positive commuter culture,» said the authority.

Eleven motorists, aged between 29 and 60, will be charged in court on Tuesday (Jan 27) for speeding offences involving heavy vehicles not fitted with speed limiters.In a media release on Monday, the police said that the alleged offences were committed between October and November 2025.Six cases involved bus drivers who exceeded their vehicles' imposed speed limit of 60kmh.Of these, five were travelling along expressways at speeds of between 73kmh and 77kmh, while a 53-year-old male driver was found driving a bus along Jalan Buroh towards West Coast Road at a speed of 81kmh.There were three cases involving drivers of cement mixers, which have a speed limit of 40kmh.The first driver travelled at 57kmh along Upper Bukit Timah Road, while the second and third drivers travelled at 54kmh and 63kmh along Bartley Road East in separate incidents.A 38-year-old man was also caught while driving a prime mover along the same road at a speed of 68kmh.

A police report has been filed by public transport operator SBS Transit after a car was caught on video hogging a bus lane on the afternoon of Friday (Jan 23).In a statement to AsiaOne, SBS Transit spokesperson Grace Wu said a service 51 bus was travelling along Geylang Road when a car entered the extreme left lane occupied by the bus.Wu added that, as a result of the car's actions, the bus had to slow down and also repeatedly brake abruptly, even though there were no other vehicles ahead of the car.«We have filed a police report regarding the incident, as the car driver had driven in a manner that posed a potential safety risk to other road users, particularly to our bus commuters,» she said. A video of the incident was posted on TikTok, showing the bus driver growing visibly frustrated with a car ahead. In the footage, the silver car can be seen moving slowly in the far-left lane. At one point, the bus driver is heard on a call, explaining that the car was travelling at just 10kmh. 

A woman was caught on video hitting a wheelchair user on the back of the head at a bus interchange, sparking online concerns that the latter may be a victim of abuse. In the video shared on Facebook, the woman, wearing a mask, can be seen at a bus interchange standing behind the wheelchair user who is dressed in a yellow T-shirt. As the woman attempts to move the wheelchair to board a bus, she appears to push it forcefully before striking the back of the victim's head. According to the post's caption, an eyewitness said the incident occurred at Hougang Central Bus Interchange on Friday (Jan 23) at around 3 pm. The post stated that the woman, believed to be a domestic helper, had allegedly struck the wheelchair user on the head multiple times. 

If you've noticed a burnt smell in the air on Monday (Jan 26) night and are wondering if its the haze at work, here's why. According to the Meteorological Service Singapore's (MSS) regional haze map, two hotspots were detected — in Pengerang and in Punggai.  MSS' regional haze map showing the two hotspots in Pengerang and Punggai on Monday (Jan 26) evening. IMAGE: MSS While the hotspot in Pengerang may be due to heat generated by the Pengerang power station, a fire was reported in Punggai, about 26km away from the eastern tip of Changi Airport. Punggai Fire and Rescue Station chief Ezam Mistorerrodin said they were alerted to peat soil fires in the Punggai area at about 11am on Monday, adding that the fire had spread from 5.26ha to 12.14ha due to dry weather.