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Malay Mail
05-07-2025
- Malay Mail
Singapore's SMRT says power distribution system fault may have led to Bukit Panjang LRT disruption
SINGAPORE, July 5 — A fault in a power monitoring and control system may have caused the power trip that disrupted Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) services for nearly three hours on July 3. The Straits Times reported that SMRT Trains president Lam Sheau Kai said in a Facebook post on July 4 that preliminary investigations found the power trip could be linked to the Power Scada system. 'We will continue to closely monitor the system as the renewal works progress,' said Lam. The Power Scada system monitors and controls power distribution across the LRT line and is intended to enhance safety and reliability of operations. Lam said the system developed a fault that affected the Emergency Trip System (ETS) and caused traction power on the LRT line to trip. The Power Scada system is part of the BPLRT Power Renewal Project, which is targeted for completion by the end of 2026. The project also includes replacing power rails, upgrading the signalling system and replacing first-generation trains. Lam said SMRT and the Land Transport Authority are investigating the incident and will conduct a comprehensive design review to improve network stability. 'On behalf of the BPLRT renewal project team, we apologise for the inconvenience caused and thank commuters for their patience and understanding,' he added. The July 3 power fault disrupted train services across all BPLRT stations from about 8.50am, with services progressively resuming from 11.30am. Lam said five trains were stalled between stations while seven trains were stationary at platforms during the disruption. He said SMRT employees guided commuters from the stalled trains on the track to the nearest station. Lam said SMRT bypassed the ETS to restore traction power, allowing services to resume. He added that additional staff were deployed to man all stations for the rest of the day as a safety measure.
Online Citizen
04-07-2025
- Business
- Online Citizen
SMRT: Power system fault may have caused three-hour Bukit Panjang LRT disruption on 3 July
SINGAPORE: A nearly three-hour disruption halted services on the Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) line on 3 July 2025, after a fault in the system controlling power distribution triggered a power trip. SMRT Trains' president Lam Sheau Kai stated on 4 July that preliminary investigations indicated the issue may be linked to the Power SCADA (an acronym for supervisory control and data acquisition) system. This system is integral to the BPLRT network's operations, monitoring and controlling power distribution to maintain safety and reliability. According to Lam, the Power SCADA system developed a fault that subsequently affected the Emergency Trip System (ETS), resulting in the traction power being tripped. The SCADA system is part of the BPLRT Power Renewal Project, which is being conducted in collaboration with the Land Transport Authority (LTA), Colas Rail, Schneider Electric, and SMRT. The power disruption began at around 8.50am and affected train services at all BPLRT stations. Train services were progressively restored from 11.30am after the ETS was bypassed to reinstate traction power. Five trains were stalled between stations, while seven others were stationary at platforms during the outage. SMRT staff guided commuters from the stalled trains to the nearest stations safely. In response, regular and bridging bus services were activated to support affected commuters during the disruption. Additional staff were also deployed to man all stations throughout the rest of the day as a precaution. Lam confirmed that LTA and SMRT have launched a full investigation into the incident, which includes a comprehensive design review of the Power SCADA system to enhance network stability. He added that the organisations will continue to monitor the system closely as renewal works progress. On behalf of the BPLRT renewal project team, Lam issued an apology for the inconvenience and thanked commuters for their patience and understanding. This incident marked the second rail disruption in the week. On 1 July, a signalling fault at Orchard station on the Thomson-East Coast Line caused service delays between Napier and Great World stations for two hours. The Bukit Panjang LRT, which spans 8km, has a history of operational issues. The most recent major disruption occurred on 22 October 2024, when service stalled during the evening peak between Bukit Panjang and Choa Chu Kang. Trains did not resume until the next morning. Initial investigations at the time pointed to a fault in one of the train's wheel assemblies. In response, LYA and SMRT announced reduced operating hours from Thursdays to Sundays, starting 14 November 2024 through to 31 October 2025, to accommodate renewal works. These efforts include upgrading the BPLRT's signalling system and testing both new and retrofitted light-rail vehicles. Since 2022, LTA has been progressively implementing a new communications-based train control system to enhance train speed regulation. The full system renewal is now slated for completion by end-2026, delayed by two years due to manpower shortages and supply chain issues stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2024, the LRT network, which includes the Sengkang-Punggol lines, recorded an average daily ridership of 210,000, reflecting a 4 per cent year-on-year increase.
Straits Times
04-07-2025
- General
- Straits Times
Power distribution system may be linked to Bukit Panjang LRT disruption: SMRT
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The Power Scada system plays a key role in monitoring and controlling power distribution across the LRT line. SINGAPORE - A system that monitors and controls power distribution may be linked to the power trip that caused service on the Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) system to be disrupted for almost three hours on July 3. In a post on train operator SMRT's Facebook page on July 4 , Mr Lam Sheau Kai, the president of SMRT Trains, said preliminary investigations found that the power trip could be linked to the Power Scada system . The system plays a key role in monitoring and controlling power distribution across the LRT line, enhancing the safety and reliability of train operations, he added. Mr Lai said the Power Scada system had developed a fault, which then affected the E mergency Trip System (ETS) and caused the traction power on the LRT line to be tripped. The system is part of the BPLRT Power Renewal Project , which is targeted for completion by end 2026. Mr Lam said LTA and SMRT are conducting an investigation to address the issue, which includes a comprehensive design review of the system to enhance network stability. 'We will continue to closely monitor the system as the renewal works progress,' he said. 'On behalf of the BPLRT renewal project team, we apologise for the inconvenience caused and thank commuters for their patience and understanding,' added Mr Lam. On July 3 , a power fault led to a disruption at all stations on the BPLRT line. Train services were stalled from about 8.50am and progressively resumed from 11.30am. As a result of the power fault, five trains were stalled between stations, while seven trains were stationary at platforms, said Mr Lam. Commuters who were on trains stalled on the track were guided by SMRT employees to the nearest station, he added. To allow the resumption of train services, Mr Lam said the ETS was bypassed, which reinstated traction power to the trains. Additional staff were also deployed to man all stations till the end of the day as an added safety measure, he added.
The Star
03-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Star
No train service across Singapore's entire Bukit Panjang LRT line due to power fault
SMRT said free regular or bridging buses are available outside the stations. ST FILE SINGAPORE: Train service across the entire Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) line came to a halt on Thursday (July 3) morning due to a power fault. In a Facebook update at 9.13am, transport operator SMRT notified commuters about the fault spanning all 13 stations that happened at around 8.50am. It said that free regular or bridging buses are available outside the stations. In an update about five minutes later, SMRT said that its staff are on site working to resolve the issue and are assisting affected commuters. 'Train services are currently unavailable across the entire BPLRT system. In-train and station announcements have been made to keep commuters informed,' SMRT said. 'We apologise for the disruption to your journey and appreciate your patience', it added. This is the second train disruption to occur this week, after a signalling fault at Orchard station on the Thomson-East Coast Line on July 1 led to delays between Napier and Great World stations. Train service resumed after two hours. The 8km long BPLRT network has had a long history of reliability issues, with the most recent disruption taking place on Oct 22, 2024, during the evening rush hour. Train services stalled between the Bukit Panjang and Choa Chu Kang LRT stations and only resumed the next morning. Initial findings showed that the breakdown was in one of the wheel assemblies on a faulty train. Following this, the Land Transport Authority and SMRT said that it would end train services an hour earlier from Thursdays to Sundays between Nov 14, 2024, and Oct 31, 2025 to facilitate renewal works. These include the upgrading of the BPLRT's signalling system, and the testing of new and retrofitted light-rail vehicles. Works to upgrade the existing signalling system on the BPLRT to a new communications-based train control system that better controls train speeds – similar to that used on MRT lines – have been carried out progressively since 2022. LTA said it is targeting to complete the full renewal programme by the end of 2026. This was delayed by two years from 2024 due to a manpower shortage and supply chain disruptions arising from the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2024, the average daily ridership on the LRT network, which includes the Sengkang-Punggol LRT, stood at 210,000. This was an increase of 4 per cent over the 2023 figure. - The Straits Times/ANN
