Kawasaki Heavy Industries & Nippon Sharyo 751B
- Not to be confused with Alstom Metropolis C751A.
| Kawasaki Heavy Industries & Nippon Sharyo C751B 川崎重工业－日本车辆制造株式会社 C751B | |
| A C751B train approaching Choa Chu Kang. | |
| In service | 28 January 2000 - Current |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Nippon Sharyo |
| Constructed | 1999 - 2001 |
| Number built | Passenger service: 126 carriages (21 trains) |
| Formation | 6 per trainset DT - M1 - M2 - M2 - M1 - DT |
| Capacity | 1920 passengers 288 seats |
| Operator | SMRT Corporation |
| Depot(s) | Bishan, Changi and Ulu Pandan |
| Line(s) served | North South Line, East West Line, Changi Airport Extension |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction |
Aluminium-alloy double- skinned construction |
| Car length | 23 m |
| Width | 3.2 m |
| Height | 3.7 m |
| Doors | 1.45 m, 8 per car |
| Maximum speed | 90 km/h (Design) 80 km/h (Service) |
| Weight | 34800 kg (DT) 39000 kg (M1/M2) |
| Traction system | IGBT-VVVF (Fuji Electric) |
| Engine(s) | Three-phase induction motor (S120-3380) 140kW 550V 193A 1760rpm |
| Electric system(s) | 750 V DC 3rd rail |
| Safety system(s) | Automatic Train Control (ATC) Automatic Train Protection (ATP) |
| Gauge | 1,435 mm Standard gauge |
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Kawasaki Heavy Industries & Nippon Sharyo C751B cars are part of the newest rolling stock used in Singapore's original Mass Rapid Transit network, operating on the North South Line , East West Line and Changi Airport Extension since early 2000. 21 trainsets of 6 cars each were purchased, and it is the first rolling stock to feature VVVF Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor traction control system. Kawasaki Heavy Industries manufactured 66 cars and Nippon Sharyo manufactured 60 cars respectively with no comparable differences, having built to agreed specifications. This was the only train which was able to produce sparks at the crossover near Newton MRT Station
Fleet
Exterior design
The most prominent difference between these trains, and trains of the older generation, such as the Kawasaki C151 train before refurbishment, are in terms of its exterior design and colours. The front of the train sports a more slanted and streamlined look, with the run number display in Orange LED Display. The sides of the train, instead of having the conventional white background with a red stripe, consists of a shiny black area covering the middle portion of the train from just above the windows to below the windows, followed by a bold red stripe and a thinner grey stripe at the bottom of the train.
Interior design
All cars are equipped with Liquid Crystal Displays (6 in each car), and all except Train 347/348 feature LED displays. These used to show rail travel information, commercials and movie trailers. They also come with more grab poles, wider seats, more space near the doors and wheelchair space. The interior and exterior design of the train have been improved, incorporating a much sleeker design. The LEDs however have seen little usage after a new series of voice announcements were introduced across the system in mid-2008. 327/328 is the only one to have VPIS working in 2009; and in 27 July 2010, STARIS were installed on 319/320 and 321/322 as demonstrators, followed by the rest of the C751Bs from September 2010, returning back its VPIS to the activated form, in blue text.
The colour layout on these trains are also different from their earlier counterparts. Cars 1 and 6 use a sort of pinkish-purple color on the seats, while cars 2 and 5 use a different shade of blue, and the middle cars using a bluish-green. All door panels and walls are white, which was subsequently adopted in the refurbishment of the C151 cars.
Experimental programmes
In 2001, when the Changi Airport Line was opened, some of these trains plying the East West Line had luggage racks installed. These luggage racks were installed in every carriage of the train, taking up the space of two seats next to the door at the end of each carriage. The purpose of those racks were to let travellers to the airport, who usually carry a large amount of luggage, to have a space to place their bags easily.
However, these luggage racks were always underutilised. Travellers preferred holding on to their bags where they were standing or sitting, as opposed to placing them on the luggage racks, probably due to convenience and fear of theft. Some commuters were also complaining that these racks took up critically needed space which could be occupied by other passengers which often filled the train. Furthermore, the through service to Changi Airport was cancelled and replaced by a shuttle service to and from Tanah Merah station, dismissing the need to provide these racks for non-airport bound train services. Therefore, in 2003, trains with the luggage racks had their luggage racks removed, and replaced with an empty standing area, with a dual purpose of serving as a wheelchair area.
SMRT Active Route Map Information System
All C751Bs STARIS are operational.
Train withdrawal incidents
On 13 April 2002, a fault was detected in a C751B train and was subsequently withdrawn to the Changi Depot for investigations. As the train is under warranty, the engineers from the manufacturers of the train and gearbox flown in on 21 April and they detected that the gearboxes had metal fragments found in it on 22 April. When they found out the other 20 trains had fragmented gearboxes on 23 April 2002, SMRT withdraw all 21 C751B trains and suspended the Boon Lay - Changi Airport train through service and replaced with the Tanah Merah - Changi Airport shuttle service. Train's frequency was also adjusted until early May when 8 trains returned to service. By June 2002, all C751B trains had return to service and the through service was resumed.
Vandalism
In the wee hours of 17 August 2011, 311/312 had been vandalised by someone whom had broken into Bishan Depot (BSD), making it the second time in the history. During the morning peak hour, 311/312 was discovered with the graffiti on the NSL North Bound by the TO. The case was handed over to the police and investigation are still going on.
Safety systems
Kawasaki Heavy Industries & Nippon Sharyo C751B cars are equipped with Automatic Train Control (ATC), supplemented with Automatic train operation (ATO). At a fallback level, Automatic Train Protection (ATP) is available.
Serial number
The car numbers of the trains range from x311 to x352, where x depends on the carriage type. Individual cars are assigned a 4 digit serial number by the rail operator SMRT.
- The first digit depends upon whether the car is the first, second or third car from either end of the train, where the first car equals 3, the second equals 1 & the third equals 2.
- The other 3 digits is the train identification number. A full length train of 6 cars have 2 different identification number, one for the first 3 cars, and the same number plus 1, for the other three. The smaller number is always an odd number. For example, a train would consist of 6 cars with serial numbers, 3333, 1333, 2333, 2334, 1334, 3334 respectively.
- The reason why the car numbers begin with x311 is because there is a revenue car of the first-generation Kawasaki Heavy Industries C151 cars, specially dedicated in transporting goods and trolleys of car number 3301.
- Kawasaki Heavy Industries built sets 311/312, 315/316, 319/320, 323/324, 327 - 334, 343/344, 347/348, 351/352. (11 trainsets)
- Nippon Sharyo built sets 313/314, 317/318, 321/322, 325/326, 335 - 342, 345/346, 349/350. (10 trainsets)