I REFER to last Friday's articles about the Budget Debate on the Ministry of Transport.

I AM the mother of a young baby. We take public transport and walk on the streets and pedestrian paths. My walk with my baby in her pram is a hazardous journey most days because of cyclists: They zoom past us, or head straight at us at top speed. Often, I've had to rush onto the grass verge to avoid them.

I HAVE the feeling that history is about to repeat itself following the unexpected showing by the opposition parties at last Saturday's general election in Malaysia.

I REFER to Saturday's letter, 'HDB ceiling doesn't factor in late marriages''. Ms Xu Zhilin says the $8,000 income ceiling doesn't consider the trend among Singaporeans of marrying late, resulting in a combined income that is slightly higher because they have worked for a few years. However, this ignores the point that there are many lower-income people in need of HDB housing, and Ms Xu is not alone in looking for a roof to start a family.

THE Housing Board's Fiance/Fiancee Scheme should consider including citizens who are dating non-citizens or non-permanent residents. My fiancee and I have been dating for the past six years after we met as undergraduates while I was studying abroad.

LAST year, my mother lost her fight against cancer. She was insured under an NTUC Income IncomeShield policy. In mid-October, my NTUC Income insurance agent helpfully put in an IncomeShield claim to cover my mother's medical costs. The agent personally submitted my mother's medical bills and death certificate at an NTUC Income service branch.

ON SUNDAY, at around 8pm, a group of us went to Banquet Foodcourt at IMM for dinner. After finishing his meal, my five-year-old son went to the fruit and juice stall to buy watermelon juice. About five minutes later, he came back crying. I asked him what happened and he told me he had an electric shock.

ON MY way back from Hong Kong to Singapore after a trip on March 2, I checked in at the Jetstar airline counter two hours before departure as advised. I was confident that I would make it in time for my 8.15pm flight, even though the immigration and customs' baggage check took much longer than expected. When I ran to take the shuttle bus, it was only 7.55 p.m.

I TOOK my parents and two young children, aged two and four, with me to North Carolina in the United States for four months beginning February for a job posting. I had booked my return journey at a June date from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Singapore with Singapore Airlines in January. My return flight consists of a connection with Continental Air from Raleigh to Newark, followed by an onward journey from Newark to Singapore.

I HAVE made the following observations regarding the bus service to the zoo/night safari. Many tourists take bus 138 to the zoo/night safari from the Ang Mo Kio bus interchange. They do not know the correct bus fare and only enquire about it upon boarding the bus. And they take a long time to come up with the correct fare.

PAYING parking/traffic fines through the AXS kiosk should be made simpler. Let me give an example. If I have to pay URA and HDB fines, first I have to select which one to pay first; then I key in the vehicle number or notice number; then I select the amount; select confirm; after the successful transaction, I have to insert the ATM card, enter the PIN; and then repeat the steps again for payment of the other fine.

WE REFER to Saturday's online letter, 'Curbing plastic bag usage: FairPrice, please copy Ikea", by Mr Phillip Ang Keng Hong. As a socially responsible retailer, FairPrice has been very supportive of environmentally-friendly initiatives to reduce the use of plastic bags. Indeed, we took the lead in being the first supermarket retailer in Singapore to reward customers for using their own bags when we launched the FairPrice Green Reward Scheme in July last year. Under the scheme, FairPrice rewards shoppers with an instant 10-cent rebate for a minimum purchase of $10 if they use their own bags to pack in their purchases.