It is good that family time and family ties remain a priority for many Singaporeans (“Family ties – good; family time – not so good”; yesterday). Nevertheless, much more needs to be done, as our infrastructure to support work-family life balance is far from ideal. For example, the free-parking policy is an area that can be improved on. While HDB does have a Family Season Parking Ticket scheme, it remains inadequate, due to impracticality and a lack of awareness for many. Parking can subtly influence decisions made to visit relatives and family members that, in turn, impact the bonds built. Hence, HDB and URA should refine the Sun free-parking policy, and apply it from Sat afternoon onwards, to allow more time for people to visit their relatives. The Government should look at more “soft” policies, such as parking, in order to move towards a more family-friendly Singapore.... Continue Reading