East-West Line services resume after train breakdown near Tiong Bahru MRT station

SINGAPORE — Train commuters on a section of the East-West Line were delayed on Oct 10, after a train broke down near the Tiong Bahru station.

A first-generation westbound Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) train had stalled at about 12.30pm, and all the passengers safely disembarked at the Outram Park station, SMRT said in a Facebook post on Oct 10.

The operator said at 1.14pm that the fault was cleared, and train services were being restored.

SMRT had said earlier on Facebook that commuters had to add 25 minutes to their travel time from Outram Park to Queenstown stations.

They were also to add 20 minutes when travelling from Queenstown to Bugis stations.

Free regular bus services were provided between the Outram Park and Queenstown stations.

"We are sorry for the inconvenience caused to your commute," said SMRT.

Project manager Norman Goh, 46, who boarded the train at the Outram Park station, said the train stopped abruptly when it was travelling towards the Tiong Bahru station.

"Strangely, the train was tilted when it stopped moving," said Goh, who was with his father, who is wheelchair-bound.

He added that the train then travelled back to the Outram Park station.

Other commuters The Straits Times spoke to said they did not realise that there was a train disruption, but noticed that the trains took longer to arrive at their stations.

One of them, who gave her name only as Farhana, said she was worried about being late for work. She had left the office at lunchtime and had planned to work from home for the rest of the day.

The 24-year-old, who works in the financial services industry, said she waited for about 10 minutes for a train from Outram Park to Tiong Bahru.

Train services on another section of the EWL were also disrupted for six days after a faulty train damaged track equipment on Sept 25.

The faulty train was also a first-generation KHI train then, with the Land Transport Authority saying on the same day that both the authority and SMRT would do a thorough check on these trains overnight, before they were put into service the next day.

The earlier disruption affected about 2.6 million commuters, including some students who were late for their examinations.

Student Thahira Ariska said on Oct 10 she waited for about 10 minutes for a train from her home in Boon Lay to Outram Park.

The 16-year-old added that she had to take the bridging buses whenever she needed to travel towards the east during the earlier disruption, and had to leave home an hour earlier.

She said: "It's a bit disappointing that this is happening, because I thought the train was back to normal."

[[nid:704029]]

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.