A look at Singapore’s MRT disruption and other train delays in Asia

Published: 8:30pm, 30 Sep 2024Updated: 9:45pm, 30 Sep 2024

Singapore experienced its worst MRT disruption in the railway’s 37-year history last week when a withdrawn train derailed on Wednesday, affecting around 2.1 million commuters.

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Operator SMRT, one of the city state’s two metro operators, and the Land Transport Authority announced on Monday night that services on the East-West Line will resume on Tuesday after the completion of necessary tests.

The incident occurred around 9am last Wednesday when an empty train had a defective axle box. This caused the wheels of the undercarriage to come off the rails, resulting in damage to various parts of the track, including equipment, a third rail that supplies power to the trains, and point machines, which guide trains from one track to another.

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As engineers and technicians in the city state scramble to get operations back on track, here’s a look at how other similarly modern Asian cities have handled train delays and disruptions in recent years.

Free bus services were provided in Singapore following a major railway disruption. Photo: Jean Iau
Free bus services were provided in Singapore following a major railway disruption. Photo: Jean Iau

  

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