Safety on the Mass Rapid Transit

The safety of the Mass Rapid Transit system in Singapore was questioned by the public after several accidents on the system during the 1980s and 1990s. Most problems have been addressed, and many safety measures are visible to users of the system.

Significant incidents
5 August 1993 (7:50 am) – Two C151 trains collided with each other at Clementi, resulting in 132 injuries. The collision occurred because a work train that did maintenance work earlier that morning had spilled oil onto the tracks. One of the trains on that stretch of track that morning had been unable to brake in time because of the oil, resulting in a collision with a stationary train which was waiting to move off upon the recharging of its brakes.

9 October 1997 (2:00 am) – A maintenance train derailed in the tunnel near Toa Payoh. The derailment occurred because a staff member had failed to reset the track alignment properly. Disruption to train services between Bishan and Newton lasted about 8 hours.

13 April 1999 (10:00 am) – An empty C651 train on its way back to Bishan Depot after the morning peak service derailed between Yio Chu Kang and Ang Mo Kio. The derailment occurred because the station master had failed to reset the track alignment properly. Disruption to train services lasted about 7 hours.

23 April 2002 – 21 C751B trains were withdrawn from service due to faulty gearboxes, though there were no safety implications. There were reduced train services on all lines resulting from this shortage of trains.

3 March 2003 (7:30 pm) – A car crashed onto a stretch of at-grade track along Lentor Avenue in between Khatib and Yio Chu Kang, resulting in a light, minor collision by an oncoming train. Disruption to train services between along this section of the line lasted almost 3 hours.

24 July 2006 (12:45 pm) – HarbourFront to Clarke Quay stations were closed due to a loss of traction power with a train stalling after Outram Park. Attempts to bring the power back failed and hundreds of passengers were evacuated from the trains. According to later investigations, a cable which supplied traction power came loose. Train service was disrupted for hours.

21 January 2008 (5.30 am–12 pm) – There was no train service from Tanah Merah to Pasir Ris due to an accident involving a service train in the middle of Simei and Tampines at midnight. Trains were disrupted; there were no trains from Tanah Merah to Pasir Ris.

20 September 2011 (5.30 am) – A power fault disrupted train services on all 16 stations on the Circle Line. The four hours delay left thousands of commuters stranded during rush-hour. It was reported that leaks and a damaged cable along the Circle Line were the cause of the disruption. Investigations were carried out, and it was found that a faulty cable beneath the platform level at Dakota Station caused a power fault that affected train services at all 16 stations on the Circle Line.

17 October 2011 (8.36 am-11.12 am) – A train heading from Labrador Park to Pasir Panjang experienced a fault and had to be taken out of service. Normal train services resumed at 11.12am.

14 December 2011 (6 am–11.45 am) – A communication network problem caused service disruption between Marymount and one-north at 6 am. Full services were resumed at 11.45am and bus bridging services were extended till 1pm.

15 December 2011 (6.45 pm–11.40 pm) – A 40m stretch of power rail damaged between City Hall and Dhoby Ghaut stations caused service disruption on the North South Line between Marina Bay and Bishan stations. Full train services between the affected stations resumed at 11.40pm. Lights went off and ventilation was inadequate in some trains. A window in a train (C151 - 067/068) was smashed and doors were forced open to provide ventilation. Commuters were evacuated from trains and moved out of the stations.

17 December 2011 (6.50 am-1.50 pm) – A 50m stretch of power rail damaged between Newton and Orchard stations as an early morning. As due to the procedure of damaged rails and dislodged claws, the MRT was closed from 5.30am to 12pm on 18 December 2011.

26 December 2011 – A loud bang was heard coming from a train along the North-East Line at about 7.20 pm. Operator SBS Transit said it was due to a sudden electrical surge on the train heading towards Punggol. A short in the surge protector resulted in a loud sound. Passengers were asked to disembark at Hougang station as a safety precaution. This caused a delay of nine minutes for the service towards Punggol.

15 March 2012 (6.30 am-4.35 pm) – Train services were disrupted on the North East Line between HarbourFront and Dhoby Ghaut stations due to a power supply fault.

17 August 2012 – Train services along the whole stretch of North East Line disrupted due to a power supply fault and a subsequent signalling fault. This was due to a broken U-bolt which caused train delays throughout the day.

10 January 2013 (9.50 am-4.35 pm) – Train services on the North East Line was disrupted due to a power fault

For other train delays, visit.

Safety
These incidents have prompted the authorities to consider strengthening the fences along the at grade sections of train track running beside the roads, which was done. There was a proposal to install platform screen doors at elevated stations and platform gates at elevated stations, but was rejected before due to the high installation and maintenance costs, which could eventually be borne by the passenger. However, on 25 January 2008, Mr. Raymond Lim, the then Minister for Transport mentioned in a speech that Land Transport Authority has been studying the feasibility of installing platform screen doors on elevated MRT stations. With platform screen doors being adopted in more transit systems worldwide, their cost has fallen, making them more cost-effective now."

Safety was also an issue as there was the risk that passengers might get trapped in the gap created between the platform gates and the train as a result of the platform gates. All stations have installed their CCTVs before the announcement of HHPSDs was up.

Fire safety
After the Daegu subway fire incident in South Korea, fire prevention became an important consideration of the Mass Rapid Transit system. The MRT uses the guidelines of the American National Fire Prevention Authorities (NFPA), which were established for enhancing fire safety within metro systems. The guidelines contain criteria concerning the availability of emergency exits (within 600m), emergency evacuation with detrainment time (max. 15 min), escalators, and other design features. All the MRT stations and all trains have fire extinguisher and smoke detection systems.

Platform Screen Doors
Platform Screen Doors by Westinghouse are installed at all underground MRT stations. Singapore's Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) was the first heavy rail system in the world to incorporate platform screen doors in its stations in 1987. These doors serve to prevent suicides, enable climate control within the station (better ventilation and air conditioning), better security control as access to the tunnels and tracks is restricted and for passenger safety considerations.

There is generally 2 series of the full height platform screen doors in use. The first series, installed at all underground stations along the North South Line and the East West Line (except Changi Airport Station and Bishan station), have been in use since 1987. These cost about an additional S$1 million per platform. The latest series of platform screen doors, featuring a sleeker design and incorporating more glass surfaces, are installed at all underground stations along the two driverless MRT lines, North East Line and Circle Line. The Changi Airport and Bishan stations had installed screen doors, on the basic existing lines.

In a speech by the Minister for Transport on 25 January 2008, the government had announced plans for the retrofitting of half-height platform screen doors on all platforms at all elevated stations by 2012. This was an about turn from the government's previous stance of not supporting the retrofitting of these gates at elevated platforms due to prohibitively high costs. Costs have since fallen due to the popularity of such gates worldwide, making such a project now feasible.

Emergency equipment
The safety facilities in the MRT are listed below:
 * Emergency Stop Plunger (ESP)/Emergency Train Stop (ETS)
 * Emergency Telephone
 * GTM's Passenger intercom at SBS Transit stations
 * Fire extinguishers
 * Emergency Stop Button on escalator/travelator
 * Emergency Detrainment Ramp
 * Emergency Communication Button
 * Emergency door handle of platform screen doors