Singapore – The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has teamed up with MullenLowe Singapore to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the beloved ‘Thoughtful Bunch,’ the homegrown icons promoting gracious behaviour among commuters.

The Thoughtful Bunch—Stand-Up Stacey, Give-Way Glenda, Hush-Hush Hannah, Move-In Martin, and Bag-Down Benny—have been raising awareness across Singapore about proper commuting etiquette and encouraging gracious behaviour.

For this anniversary campaign, the Thoughtful Bunch characters are featured in a new series of visuals, interacting with each other for the first time in 10 years. Conveying the core message of ‘thoughtfulness thriving through shared gracious acts,’ these interactions emphasise the importance of practicing graciousness and thoughtfulness as a collective effort.

LTA is also hosting a special birthday celebration for the Thoughtful Bunch. Taking place from October 11–13, the 3-day event will showcase the iconic characters as custom life-size sculptures, symbolising a decade of thoughtful acts and graciousness.

The celebration will feature a variety of games centred on thoughtfulness and graciousness in public transportation, with Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Transport Baey Yam Keng serving as the guest of honour to officially open the event.

To further extend graciousness to the daily lives of Singaporeans, LTA also partnered with BreadTalk to launch nine limited edition products. The ‘BreadTalk Thoughtful Collection’ will be available throughout October at selected BreadTalk outlets nationwide, featuring an assortment of buns, cakes, and toast inspired by the five Thoughtful Bunch characters.

This marks the second consecutive year that MullenLowe Singapore has collaborated with LTA as their creative agency, overseeing everything from conceptualisation to deployment across all campaign aspects. 

This year’s 360° integrated campaign includes a diverse range of out-of-home assets, such as MRT platform screen doors, wall stickers, walkway banners, in-train displays, bus wraps, along with social media and digital content.

Roan Ebrahim, regional business director at MullenLowe Singapore, said, “We are pleased to collaborate with the Land Transport Authority for the second year running. This year’s graciousness campaign extends the strategy of the previous year’s and encourages people in Singapore to be gracious together. We also aimed to shift the strategy from the ‘what’ to the ‘why’, seeking to remind commuters on why we should choose to be gracious, from being focused on raising awareness to being driven by motivation.” 

Launched in 2009, the Graciousness on Public Transport Campaign aims to encourage thoughtful behaviours such as giving up seats, queuing orderly, and moving in to ensure a more pleasant commuting experience. These gracious and considerate actions are embodied by the Thoughtful Bunch, introduced in 2014.

Singapore – The Land Transportation Authority (LTA), alongside The Secret Little Agency (TSLA) is marking the end of its film series focusing on EV readiness in Singapore by releasing its third and final instalment of the film series, directed by renowned local filmmaker Jack Neo.

The third and final installment, starring iconic Singaporean actor Henry Thia, is aimed at sharing the electrification of public transportation driving environmental benefits. The heart wrenching drama follows Ah Hui on his journey to keep his promise to his departed love, to live more sustainably, culminating in his realisation that sustainable transportation is readily available through our buses.

The decision to collaborate with Jack Neo, one of Singapore’s most celebrated filmmakers, was a strategic one. Leveraging Neo’s unparalleled ability to connect with Singaporeans through his unique brand of humor and storytelling, the final film lands the message that all generations are already experiencing Singapore in it’s EV readiness with the electrification of bus fleets; all Singaporeans, not just vehicle drivers, have a part to play in driving our switch to electric initiatives forward.

The campaign–launched December last year–sought to educate Singaporeans around the ready infrastructure supporting the adoption of electric vehicles that exists today and into the near future through the use of cinematic films. 

The three films utilises storytelling in surprising ways, playing on typical genre tropes familiar to all movie-lovers to land tactical messaging on the nation’s electric future. The first film touched on the longevity of a full charge of an average electric vehicle through an action-packed film; and the second used a Romeo/Juliet-esque romance musical to bring to life the ease and convenience of switching to an EV through comprehensive charging infrastructure networks across the country. 

Nicholas Ye and Mavis Neo, co-chief creative officers at The Secret Little Agency, said, “We wanted this final iteration to speak to the hearts of Singaporeans, young and old. Neo’s brand of storytelling, brings a fun, familiar, deeply resonant twist to our series. We saw the opportunity to bridge the knowledge gaps between generations, through highlighting the diverse ways in which Singaporeans of all ages contribute, shape, and experience Singapore’s EV-future, as past of the collective action towards a sustainable future.”

Singapore The National Arts Council (NAC) and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) have announced a three-year collaboration to increase public engagement with the arts in land transport settings and during public transportation travels. This initiative will comprise commissioned works by Singaporean artists and arts groups.

They present a themed train and stations in honour of Singapore Art Week 2024, marking the beginning of their cooperation. Furthermore, both organisations actively participate in repurposing vacant areas beneath viaducts with locally created art. The ultimate purpose of these initiatives is to bring NAC, LTA, and other stakeholders closer together to collaborate on bringing more artistic elements to public transportation hubs and improving commuter experiences in general.

Low Yen Ling, Minister of State at the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Culture, Community, and Youth, was present for the introduction of the collaboration.

Until January 28, 2024, seven train stations and a themed train operating on the North East Line will be infused with chosen artworks from Singapore Art Week (SAW), the nation’s main visual arts season. Designed as an art trail, SAW will take place from January 19 to January 28, 2024, giving the public an early chance to view the artworks on display. In-carriage activations and vibrant murals adorning MRT station walls will help to encourage this.

Commuters travelling the North-East Line will soon come upon a piece of art, a train with a theme that features a tapestry of proverbs and inspirational sayings. This piece of art, “My Mother Says,” was created together by SAW and PAssionArts and features about 20 Tampines Changkat locals. Using the creative typographic approach, participants in a three-week program turned the knowledge found in the words of their elders into light installations. 

The public expects the exhibition of a piece of art supported by the Public Art Trust program under a designated overpass in late 2024. The selected artist for this project will work in conjunction with the locals to produce a large-scale piece of art that will capture the distinctive qualities of the surrounding district and revitalise train tunnels.

This partnership expands on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that SMRT and NAC signed in August 2023, with the shared goal of improving commuting spaces via busking, poetry, and music. As part of their continued collaboration, NAC and LTA are dedicated to looking into new projects that leverage artistic expression to bring life to public areas.

Speaking about the partnership, Low Yen Ling, minister of State at the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Culture, Community, and Youth, said, “This partnership forms a part of our broader vision to transform Singapore into a distinctive city with many accessible spaces for people to enjoy the arts wherever they are. Aligned with Our SG Arts Plan (2023 – 2027), this initiative will bring the arts to commuters on their daily travel. Besides refreshing their journey, the artworks will create a greater appreciation for local talents as commuters enjoy art on the go. The public showcase will enable artists to reach and grow new audiences through a wider platform.” 

“By bringing the arts to commuter spaces, we enhance the vibrancy of these common areas and brighten the quality of travel and daily life for many Singaporeans,” Ling added. 

Meanwhile, Low Eng Teong, chief executive officer, NAC, stated, “Forging strong partnerships is one of the key strategies of Our SG Arts Plan (2023 – 2027). Our partnership with LTA unlocks greater opportunities for the public to encounter and appreciate the arts in familiar yet unconventional spaces. We hope to continue opening up more spaces as creative canvasses to integrate the arts into our everyday lives and surroundings, complementing efforts to create a distinctive city and endearing home for all.” 

Furthermore, Ng Lang, chief executive, LTA, commented, “LTA is pleased to partner NAC in this new initiative to enliven the spaces in our public transport nodes. This will enrich our existing Art in Transit (AIT) programme, bringing artworks closer to commuters and transforming our transport nodes into lively places. With millions of commuters taking public transport daily, our MRT stations and bus interchanges present an ideal canvas for artists to showcase their works, creating vibrant spaces that enhance the commute. We will collaborate with more partners through AIT to foster an even closer public connection with the arts.” 

Singapore – The country’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) has tapped MullenLowe Singapore to conceptualise the latest iteration of its ‘Graciousness on Public Transport’ campaign.

The campaign, which was first launched in 2014 by the government body, is led by iconic characters Stand-Up Stacey, Move-In Martin, Give-Way Glenda, Bag-Down Benny and Hush-Hush Hannah of the Thoughtful Bunch. 

The annual campaign reminds and nudges commuters to take action to spread graciousness for a more pleasant everyday journey across the country’s MRT network.

Commenting on the campaign, Agnes Lim, director of marketing communications at LTA, said, “The annual Graciousness on Public Transport Campaign started in 2009 to promote acts of thoughtful behaviour on public transport, such as giving up seats, queueing in an orderly manner, and moving in for a more pleasant commute. These characters are just like the everyday commuter, trying to do the right thing to make the travel experience on public transport more pleasant.”

Meanwhile, Paul Soon, CEO at MullenLowe Singapore, commented, “It is always exciting to have the opportunity to work on Singapore icons like the Thoughtful Bunch, who through the years have developed a close affinity and relationship with all who live and commute in Singapore. We intend to continue to build on what has already been so successfully nurtured by Agnes and her team by extending the emotions that all Singaporeans should feel when they take the steps to be thoughtful.”

This latest campaign will launch in the third quarter of the year, and will run for 6 months island-wide, across out-of-home, digital and social communications.