This made my day: Netizens go aww over SMRT staff's exchange with Pathlight School student

Amidst the slew of rants, vents and complaints on Facebook, this post was a breath of fresh air. 

A simple exchange between two strangers on the MRT has gone viral online — and for the most heartwarming reason. 

Facebook user Kelvin Ang was riding the Downtown Line on Tuesday afternoon (April 8) when a boy dressed in Pathlight School's uniform boarded the train. As the train departed the station, he realised that the boy was actively engaged in a conversation with an SMRT staff sitting beside him.

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"Do you drive a bus?"

"Is this bus good?"

"I noticed they upgraded the bus, do you drive the newest bus?" the boy asked.

Throughout their conversation, which lasted about 10 to 15 minutes, the pair chatted about busses with such niche knowledge that Kelvin found himself confused.

"He could mumble about technical specifications like Euro 5, Euro 6, and he knows what they mean!" Kelvin wrote. "I did not know that these are Euro Emission Standards, which refers to how much pollution the vehicle can cause."

Speaking with AsiaOne, Kelvin shared how the boy was able to notice small details such as a change in font sizes of bus numbers. He was also rather familiar with bus routes and their eventual destinations.

Despite being a complete stranger, the man, who AsiaOne understands is a bus captain, patiently answered every one of the boy's questions and even shared with him how busses have developed over the years, showing him a couple of photos on his mobile phone.

Though brief, the exchange warmed the cockles of both Kelvin's and many netizens' hearts, with many commending the SMRT staff for treating the child with patience and respect.

rainercheung@asiaone.com