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I refer the letter by Ms H titled, “Why people jaywalk between Dhoby Ghaut HSBC Branch and MacDonald House”
In her letter, she stated that the pedestrian crossing between the Dhoby Ghaut HSBC Branch and Macdonald House took three to four minutes to change to a “green man” signal, which was very long. She also said that the time allocated for the crossing is only eighteen seconds and the elderly, even the people at the back of the crowd could not make the crossing in time. Due to the above reasons, many people, including the writer herself, chose to jaywalk, and thus the traffic police fined them. The main purpose of this letter is to justify and explain the jaywalking in that area.
Her argument had a claim, a ground, and a warrant. She supported her stand with evidence from her own observation, such as the fact that the elder people crossing the street could hardly make it across due to the lack of time allocated. Although her supporting arguments seemed reasonable, but I do not see why jaywalking should be condoned.
First of all, jaywalking is a crime, and there is a good reason why it is a crime, it is a very dangerous act. The chances of getting hit by a car when jaywalking is very high, as the driver does not expect the pedestrian to cross the street where there is no traffic light. Jaywalking is dangerous for both the pedestrian and the driver; the driver may lose control of the car when trying to avoid hitting the pedestrian, while the car may hit the pedestrian.

Secondly, is the long wait for the traffic light to change a valid reason to jaywalk? I think not. This is a mature society; we all should have enough patience to wait for three to four minutes for a “green man” signal, because I believe that all of one’s life efforts are not worth sacrificing for just four minutes of convenience. As for the people who justify their jaywalking by saying that they are out of time, I would like to ask them, why are they out of...