- Joined
- Aug 20, 2022
- Messages
- 23,007
- Points
- 113
'Please wear deodorant and take showers!' — MRT passenger complains that 'every single day, someone stinks up the entire train carriage' - Singapore News
ByNick Karean
October 30, 2025
theindependent.sg
SINGAPORE: It’s rush hour, you squeeze into the MRT, grab a handlebar, and just as you’re about to relax — bam! A nasal assault hits you square in the face. Not from a malfunctioning aircon, not from an overturned cup of kopi… but from someone’s untreated, full-blown body odour!
Which is why one Singaporean commuter declared he has had enough of it. Taking to the r/SMRTRabak subreddit, the frequent MRT rider went straight for the olfactory jugular in a passionate hygiene PSA: “Every single day! EVERY SINGLE DAY, there’s someone who stinks up the entire train carriage of the MRT with their BO (body odour).”
From holding his breath to fantasising about public hygiene fines, this beleaguered Singaporean spared no detail: “I’ve had to hold my breath on two separate occasions this week and it’s… Monday!”
He added, “To those who don’t shower in the morning, we can smell it on you. Even a light rinse will do… and also those who don’t wash their hair and end up dropping all their dandruff in the MRT — PLEASE, y’all have to start being fined for littering, I swear.”
The Reddit rant then lit up with sympathetic snorts and nose-wrinkling anecdotes.
One local suggested that, “They need air freshener or strong mints, but they don’t understand that they stink.” Another lamented being ambushed by a Courts AMK sales promoter whose “breath stunk of cigarettes.”
So this isn’t just about BO. Singaporeans are also battling a multi-sensory public transport challenge — from cigarette breath to even mouldy clothes.
“I encountered someone with mouldy clothes… looks like cancer waiting to develop in him,” said one Singaporean, urging people to air their homes and use the sun.
Creative solutions were also offered — some tried aroma rings coated with scented oils, available on Shopee. Others vouch for OG (organic) remedies like Axe Oil or mask hacks: “Wear a mask – apply your fave scent inside or Vicks VapoRub, but NOT Zambuk!”
And then there are the realists, who’ve resigned to masking up every morning: “This will never work… MRT is public transport. It’s like telling the entire country not to litter. Not everyone cares.”
“For some reason, these kinds of fellas like to hold their arms up,” another added, while others said:
Still, basic hygiene remains the golden rule: Shower, use deodorant, brush your teeth, change clothes, wash your hair — rinse and repeat. It’s the bare minimum in a country where we sweat just from blinking.
And one also reminded everyone that, “Deodorant alone doesn’t replace showers and just changing clothes is not enough… It’s not even close.”
Singapore is a fine city — so perhaps it’s time it started fining the funk, too.
ByNick Karean
October 30, 2025
theindependent.sg
SINGAPORE: It’s rush hour, you squeeze into the MRT, grab a handlebar, and just as you’re about to relax — bam! A nasal assault hits you square in the face. Not from a malfunctioning aircon, not from an overturned cup of kopi… but from someone’s untreated, full-blown body odour!
Which is why one Singaporean commuter declared he has had enough of it. Taking to the r/SMRTRabak subreddit, the frequent MRT rider went straight for the olfactory jugular in a passionate hygiene PSA: “Every single day! EVERY SINGLE DAY, there’s someone who stinks up the entire train carriage of the MRT with their BO (body odour).”
From holding his breath to fantasising about public hygiene fines, this beleaguered Singaporean spared no detail: “I’ve had to hold my breath on two separate occasions this week and it’s… Monday!”
He added, “To those who don’t shower in the morning, we can smell it on you. Even a light rinse will do… and also those who don’t wash their hair and end up dropping all their dandruff in the MRT — PLEASE, y’all have to start being fined for littering, I swear.”
The Reddit rant then lit up with sympathetic snorts and nose-wrinkling anecdotes.
One local suggested that, “They need air freshener or strong mints, but they don’t understand that they stink.” Another lamented being ambushed by a Courts AMK sales promoter whose “breath stunk of cigarettes.”
So this isn’t just about BO. Singaporeans are also battling a multi-sensory public transport challenge — from cigarette breath to even mouldy clothes.
“I encountered someone with mouldy clothes… looks like cancer waiting to develop in him,” said one Singaporean, urging people to air their homes and use the sun.
Creative solutions were also offered — some tried aroma rings coated with scented oils, available on Shopee. Others vouch for OG (organic) remedies like Axe Oil or mask hacks: “Wear a mask – apply your fave scent inside or Vicks VapoRub, but NOT Zambuk!”
And then there are the realists, who’ve resigned to masking up every morning: “This will never work… MRT is public transport. It’s like telling the entire country not to litter. Not everyone cares.”
“For some reason, these kinds of fellas like to hold their arms up,” another added, while others said:
- “Some perfume smells worse when combined with BO. It’s like some sort of biological warfare.”
- “People will tell you they don’t sweat while they sleep, so why bother showering when they wake up?”
Still, basic hygiene remains the golden rule: Shower, use deodorant, brush your teeth, change clothes, wash your hair — rinse and repeat. It’s the bare minimum in a country where we sweat just from blinking.
And one also reminded everyone that, “Deodorant alone doesn’t replace showers and just changing clothes is not enough… It’s not even close.”
Singapore is a fine city — so perhaps it’s time it started fining the funk, too.
