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14-02-2025

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The Land Transport Authority (LTA) says it is working with with rail operators SMRT and SBS Transit "to improve their incident response and identify the root causes" of the recent delays on the North-South Line (NSL), North East Line (NEL) and Circle Line (CCL) seen over a five-day period in February. LTA says the three incidents are unrelated.
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The Land Transport Authority (LTA) says it takes a 'serious view' of the recent spate of delays on Singapore's train lines in February.
The North-South Line (NSL), North East Line (NEL) and Circle Line (CCL) were all hit with incidents over a span of five days leading LTA to issue a statement on Thursday evening (13 February) that 'it is working with rail operators SMRT and SBS Transit to improve their incident response and identify the root causes.'
On 7 February, an engineering vehicle broke down at a railway crossing in Bishan Depot at around 5.15am. The blockage prevented trains leaving Bishan depot to serve the NSL which forced SMRT to redirect some trains serving the East-West Line (EWL), causing delays.
When SMRT tried to move the stalled vehicle using a rescue train, some of the wheels of the engineering vehicle came off the rails. LTA mirrored a previous SMRT statement that the situation was 'completely different' from the massive EWL incident in September last year 'where an empty train derailed while it was returning to the depot.' Service on the EWL line was disrupted for six days during this event last year.
On 10 February, a signalling fault was reported at 6.08am near Buangkok station causing trains to travel slower on the NEL – normal train services resumed progressively from 8.00am. 'Preliminary investigations indicate that the incident was due to a fault in the signalling equipment, caused by a malfunctioning electronic card,' said LTA. SBS Transit replaced the malfunctioning electronic card while the malfunctioning component has been sent to the system manufacturer for further examination.
On 11 February, the CCL also saw delays during morning peak hour as the result of a signalling fault between Paya Lebar and Marymount stations at 8.15am. The fault caused a power trip affecting 17 trains. After SMRT restored operations, they saw the Central Automatic Train Supervision (CATS) System – which regulates the movement of driverless trains – was less responsive than usual and this caused further delays.
'We last experienced this issue on the CATS system in September 2024,' noted LTA which revealed that, with SMRT, they have been working together with the system manufacturer over the past months to develop a software patch. 'The patch is scheduled to be deployed this weekend, following the completion of rigorous testing,' said LTA.
The three incidents in February are unrelated.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) says it takes a 'serious view' of the recent spate of delays on Singapore's train lines in February.
The North-South Line (NSL), North East Line (NEL) and Circle Line (CCL) were all hit with incidents over a span of five days leading LTA to issue a statement on Thursday evening (13 February) that 'it is working with rail operators SMRT and SBS Transit to improve their incident response and identify the root causes.'
On 7 February, an engineering vehicle broke down at a railway crossing in Bishan Depot at around 5.15am. The blockage prevented trains leaving Bishan depot to serve the NSL which forced SMRT to redirect some trains serving the East-West Line (EWL), causing delays.
When SMRT tried to move the stalled vehicle using a rescue train, some of the wheels of the engineering vehicle came off the rails. LTA mirrored a previous SMRT statement that the situation was 'completely different' from the massive EWL incident in September last year 'where an empty train derailed while it was returning to the depot.' Service on the EWL line was disrupted for six days during this event last year.
On 10 February, a signalling fault was reported at 6.08am near Buangkok station causing trains to travel slower on the NEL – normal train services resumed progressively from 8.00am. 'Preliminary investigations indicate that the incident was due to a fault in the signalling equipment, caused by a malfunctioning electronic card,' said LTA. SBS Transit replaced the malfunctioning electronic card while the malfunctioning component has been sent to the system manufacturer for further examination.
On 11 February, the CCL also saw delays during morning peak hour as the result of a signalling fault between Paya Lebar and Marymount stations at 8.15am. The fault caused a power trip affecting 17 trains. After SMRT restored operations, they saw the Central Automatic Train Supervision (CATS) System – which regulates the movement of driverless trains – was less responsive than usual and this caused further delays.
'We last experienced this issue on the CATS system in September 2024,' noted LTA which revealed that, with SMRT, they have been working together with the system manufacturer over the past months to develop a software patch. 'The patch is scheduled to be deployed this weekend, following the completion of rigorous testing,' said LTA.
The three incidents in February are unrelated.