Summary + Reader response Draft 2

In the article “Trains on the North-South, East-West lines safe for service”, the Land Transport Authority (LTA, 2016) wrote that despite undergoing rectification works, the trains that have been in the media spotlight are safe for service. According to LTA, all new trains are tested before they are put into service. For defective trains, immediate action was taken to prevent defects from resurfacing during train operation. Hairline cracks that were discovered during inspection were confirmed to not affect operational safety. Nevertheless, to ensure that there are sufficient trains for commuters, all affected trains were sent back, one at a time, for rectification. Stringent checks would also be performed regularly to ensure operational safety of all trains. However, LTA should have made further investigation, if purchasing trains manufactured from CSR Sifang, is the most ideal choice.

Firstly, the article mentions that ‘these hairline cracks were due to localised impurity in the aluminium car-body material’ but the article fails to mention who is responsible for these hairline cracks. When the hairline cracks were discovered, LTA had an immediate response and had the entire exterior body changed of each affected trains as it was still under warranty. As sending back all 26 trains in one shot would cause a massive shortage of trains, LTA decided to send the trains one at a time. Though the trains had defects, it was still safe for commuters to travel.

Moreover, the hairline cracks were not only the major issue caused by C151A trains. On 17 December 2011, seven SMRT trains stalled on the North South Line causing the worst disruption in the entire SMRT history. The disruption across 12 stations from Marina Bay to Ang Mo Kio station lasted for at least seven hours, affecting at least 94,000 commuters. The main cause of the stalling of the trains was damage to their Current Collector Device (CCD) ‘shoes’ due to sagging of the ‘third rail’ which supplies electrical power to the trains.

Furthermore, When LTA sent out its tender for the next generation of C151 trains, there were 4 companies interested in this tender with Mitsubishi Corporation being the most expensive and Hyundai Rotem being the cheapest tender. LTA offered the tender to KHI-CSR despite not being the cheapest company. In my opinion, if finance was not the main priority, LTA should have over looked at other factors such as safety or quality of the trains in which KHI-CSR failed to perform well. As according to Asiaone, CSR Sifang made a bid for subway train contract for Boston in 2014. However, it was later eliminated when Massachusetts transport official ruled that the technical, manufacturing and quality assurance components of its bid were 'unacceptable' (Christopher Tan, 2016).

Although the C151A, from CSR Sifang, trains have caused many problems, LTA has still persisted on buying more trains from KHI-CSR. LTA purchased 57 new trains from the company. The contract names are C151B and C151C which would enter service from 2016 onwards. Moreover, the Thomson Line trains (Contract T251) are also ordered from KHI-CSR as well. LTA purchased 91 trains at the price of $749 million. In my opinion, LTA should have looked at other alternative companies such as Bombardier or Alstom to purchase better and more reliable trains.

In conclusion, LTA should do their best to avoid these incidents from occurring and having a safe journey for its commuters. Although Singapore has ten of the best city train network in the world, these are some of the minor/major issues that may lower the standard of quality.

Chew Hui Min (2015, July 8) Power shutdown at North-South, East-West lines: Past major train disruptions. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/power-shutdown-at-north-south-east-west-lines-past-major-train-disruptions

Christopher Tan (2016, July 14) Nothing routine about MRT cracks. Asia One. Retrieved from: http://news.asiaone.com/news/transport/nothing-routine-about-mrt-cracks

Gwyn Topham. (2014, Febuary 18) Ten of the best city train networks – in pictures. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/cities/gallery/2014/feb/18/ten-best-city-train-networks-in-pictures

KAWASAKI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD/CSR QINGDAO SIFANG CO. LTD/KAWASAKI HEAVY INDUSTRIES (SINGAPORE) PTE. LTD. CONSORTIUM AWARDED PRESTIGIOUS CONTRACT WORTH $749 MILLION (2014, MAY 28). In LTA news page. Retrieved from https://www.lta.gov.sg/apps/news/page.aspx?c=2&id=f0b205a6-69ab-49b0-b94d-65384ee5e5c0

Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore). (2016), from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_Rapid_Transit_(Singapore)

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OF INQUIRY INTO THE DISRUPTION OF MRT TRAIN SERVICES ON 15 AND 17 DECEMBER 2011. (2012). Retrieved July 3 2012, from 

http://www.mot.gov.sg/news/COI%20report%20-%20Executive%20Summary.pdf

TRAINS ON THE NORTH-SOUTH AND EAST-WEST LINES SAFE FOR SERVICE (2016, July 6). In LTA news page. Retrieved from https://www.lta.gov.sg/apps/news/page.aspx?c=2&id=0f8b1220-0289-4bef-99c9b2455f17a66c#_ftn1