- FOCUS ON CONTROLLABLE ASPECTS IN SHORT TERM
Don’t cut MRT operating hours on weekdays. Do it on weekends instead, say commuters
By Louisa Tang
Published09 November, 2017
Updated 09 November, 2017
SINGAPORE — Instead of reducing MRT operating hours on weekdays to allow for maintenance and asset renewal work to be carried out, most commuters whom TODAY spoke to preferred that this be done on weekends, even if it means shutting down the services on Saturdays or Sundays for extended periods.
They also want sufficient advance notice, should the Government decide to shorten weekday operating hours on the North-South and East-West Lines as proposed by Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan in Parliament earlier this week.
Ms Fiona Toh, 32, noted the inconvenience for many commuters, especially shift workers, if the service hours on weekdays are affected. “It makes more sense to stop services on weekends, since not everyone goes out then. Half an hour more is not enough for (the rail workers) to do anything substantial. If they rush, it will make things worse,” the saleswoman added.
Marketing executive Lee Ming Wei, 26, suggested ending train services an hour earlier on Saturdays, and starting operations an hour later on Sundays. “Most people don’t need to work… and don’t get up so early on Sundays,” he said.
continue reading here :
SMRT stops train services on part of East-West Line after 2 train faults in a night
10 Nov 2017 10:13PM (Updated: 11 Nov 2017 12:58AM)
SINGAPORE: The East-West Line was hit by two train disruptions in under two hours on Friday night (Nov 10), culminating in a suspension of train services between Bugis to Tanah Merah in the direction of Pasir Ris.
Train operator SMRT announced in a tweet at about 11.40pm that there are no train services along that stretch of the line, due to a train fault at Aljunied.
This came after SMRT announced a half-hour delay on the west-bound stretch and a one-hour delay on the east-bound stretch.
The first delay of the night happened at about 9.40pm. In a tweet, SMRT urged commuters to factor in an additional 30 minutes of travel time between Bugis and Queenstown MRT stations in the direction of Tuas.
This was due to a train fault near Outram Station, SMRT said, adding that the delay was not linked to new signalling project.
About 45 minutes later, at 10.35pm, SMRT announced that the train fault had been cleared and normal service had resumed.
However, at 11.15pm, SMRT took to Twitter again to inform commuters of another train fault.
This time, commuters were advised to add one hour of travel time between Tiong Bahru and Pasir Ris stations in the direction of Pasir Ris. That is about half the number of stations along the EWL.
Train service was eventually suspended between Bugis to Tanah Merah in the east-bound direction. There will be no trains along this stretch until the end of service, said SMRT.
In response to queries from Channel NewsAsia, SMRT said that a train was sent to haul the defective train at Outram out of service. However, as the coupled trains were travelling towards Changi Depot, they stalled near Paya Lebar MRT station and were unable to proceed.
“Another train was deployed to move these trains,” said SMRT. “As the rescue operations require time, east-bound train services were halted between Bugis and Tanah Merah MRT stations from 11.15pm till the end of service.”
Read more at
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/...fter-2-9396200
So whose job was it to look after defective trains ? SMRT or LTA ? So how Mr Khaw why you don’t want to set up a COI ??? Have you got something to hide ?
VIDEO: Rainwater seeps into Bukit Panjang LRT train through roof
November 11, 2017
A video showing rainwater seeping into a Bukit Panjang LRT train compartment from the roof of the compartment has been circulating online this afternoon:
According to Facebook user Joseph Pugalendhi who first posted the video online, the rain is seeping into car number 126.
When other netizens speculated that the water could be caused from air-conditioner condensation, Pugalendhi asserted that the water droplets are rain water droplets and that the air conditioner vent was far away from the area where the water droplets were seeping into the car:
This is not the first time that rainwater has been spotted leaking into train cars:
continue reading here :
http://www.theindependent.sg/video-r...-through-roof/
Commuters can have free shower . Save water . Next time commuters need to wear raincoat .
So how Mr Khaw ?
P.S . Is the EW line running smoothly ???
Longer engineering hours needed to ensure quick upgrading of rail assets: Khaw Boon Wan
PUBLISHED 2 HOURS AGO
Zhaki Abdullah
SINGAPORE - More engineering hours are needed to allow for ageing rail assets to be quickly upgraded, said Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan.
This means that train operating hours will likely be reduced.
So far, upgrading work has been done on two rail assets – sleepers and the third rail, said Mr Khaw. Work still needs to be done on the signalling system, the power supply, trains and track circuits, he added.
“That is why we need more engineering hours. This can only come if we reduce train operating hours. It is a zero-sum game,” said Mr Khaw at the Future Railway Technology for Depot and Trains, held at SMRT’s Tuas West Depot on Monday (Nov 13).
Mr Khaw noted that while the Tuas depot, which opened in June, comes with a power substation that has increased the power capacity for the rail network by 50 per cent, existing equipment in the older substations has “aged significantly and is due for renewal”.
The North-South and East-West lines were previously drawing power from four substations - Buona Vista, Bishan, Stamford and Yasin - with the peak-hour power load at about 80 per cent of the network capacity.
This was anticipated to increase by an additional 25 per cent, with the opening of the Tuas West Extension and completion of resignalling works, said Mr Khaw. This would force SMRT to tap backup reserves, he added.
“We were cutting it real close. And the need to reduce overcrowdedness in trains forced us to add new trains, further pushing the limits on our power capacity.”
Train service hours on North-South, East-West lines likely to be cut to give engineers more time
Engineering hours are currently conducted outside of operating hours for the 30-year-old North-South and East-West lines.
Mr Khaw added that a “qualitative upgrade” to train depots is needed, to build Singapore’s capabilities in “predictive maintenance” for its rail network.
continue reading here :
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapor...il-assets-khaw
Definitely you will need it Mr Khaw. If need to shut the line earlier please provide bridging bus services at 5 mins interval . Also make sure that the engineering work is done properly and verified by the right authorities . These engineering works replacement should have been done earlier and not now . The work needs to properly audit .
Top-down approach cannot fix SMRT culture issue
Published on 2017-11-13 by The Online Citizen
by David Sim
Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan, in his parliamentary speech, advocated a top-down approach to fix the negative work culture prevalent in SMRT. (“Right culture starts from the top”; 7 Nov)
Indeed, the top management must set the right direction for the company but what is even more important is how they steer the company in that direction. After each setback, SMRT has sought to tighten its command-and-control regime, imposes more rules and regulations on its staff and throws in more carrots and sticks to serve as incentive and deterrence.
Over time, such measures can only lead to the formation of what organization experts describe as a “blind obedience” or “informed acquiescence”-type organization cultures, both of which are 20th-century relics. Running SMRT is not the same as running an army and one wonder whether Desmond Quek, with his military background, truly understand how to motivate a civilian workforce to rally behind him.
Beside physical upgrades, it is time for SMRT to also upgrade its organisation thinking and move into the 21st century, towards a “self-governance” and “values-based”-type culture, in which employees can be trusted to do the right thing because they are respected by top management and are guided by core principles and values that are inspiring and which they help to create.
In this respect, SMRT can learn from transport disruptor Uber. After a series of damning news reports that besmirch its reputation and lead to the resignation of previous CEO, Travis Kalanick, the new CEO sought to transform the company’s culture by having employees write and vote on cultural guidelines for the workplace. In the end, Uber employees gave 1,200 submissions and the final rules were voted on 22,000 times. This is a much more inclusive way of building the corporate culture - from the bottom-up instead of top-down.
continue reading here :
https://www.theonlinecitizen.com/201...culture-issue/
The problem is Mr Kuek had already 5 years under his belt as CEO of SMRT . How much more time he needs to implement culture change in his organisation ? Does he even know what is company culture ? Does he poses the right skills to manage SMRT in the first place ??? Already 2 workers died on his watch and countless of major mrt breakdowns . He has failed as a CEO and I hope that SMRT should start looking for a new CEO with the right skills and attitude .
Delays on North-South Line due to train fault at Toa Payoh
14 Nov 2017 08:24AM (Updated: 14 Nov 2017 08:30AM)
SINGAPORE: Commuters on the North-South Line on Tuesday morning (Nov 14) were affected by delays during rush hour, with stations announcing a train fault near Toa Payoh.
Facebook user WB LM posted that he boarded the train at Sembawang before 6.40pm and the train was moving normally, but it stopped for about three to five minutes at each station. He reached Khatib at 6.53am, he said. The estimated travel time between the two stations, according to the TransitLink website, is usually six minutes.
There was an estimated 15 minutes’ delay in travel time from Yishun to City Hall, he added.
WB LM also said his train cabin was leaking water at two spots.
The delay persisted for more than an hour, with multiple commuters taking to social media to post about announcements estimating delays of between 10 and 20 minutes along the line.
continue reading here :
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/...8?view=DEFAULT
Such world class transport system SMRT . Still don’t want to sack your CEO ? So how Mr Khaw ? Still want to vote for PAP ?
Lapses by SMRT maintenance staff brought disrepute to transport workers, says Khaw Boon Wan
PUBLISHED 3 HOURS AGO UPDATED2 HOURS AGO
Adrian Lim Transport Correspondent
SINGAPORE - The failure of a group of SMRT staff to carry out their maintenance duties - leading to an MRT tunnel flooding in October - had “negated the good work” of other SMRT workers, and “brought disrepute” to other transport workers, said Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan on Tuesday (Nov 14).
“They have tarnished the reputation of Singapore and Singaporeans,” Mr Khaw said in a speech at Bedok Town Square, during the first appreciation day for public transport workers.
While the event was to recognise and thank about 22,000 transport workers, Mr Khaw had stern words for the SMRT staff responsible for the tunnel flooding on Oct 7 between Bishan and Braddell MRT stations, which shut down train services on a segment of the North-South Line for about 20 hours.
He said the past cannot be changed, adding: “But let it be the turning point for SMRT, especially in its journey towards transforming its corporate culture.”
He encouraged SMRT workers to dedicate their 100 per cent to make train services reliable again.
“This requires an all-out effort. This requires everyone in SMRT to play their part, from the CEO down to the rank and file,” Mr Khaw said, adding that while the company will find support from the union and other workers, SMRT staff themselves must do the “heavy lifting”.
Khaw Boon Wan speaking during an appreciation event for public transport workers
He said there will be “some black sheep” in every large organisation, and lapses leading to the flooding incident on Oct 7 could happen to other companies too.
He said the job of public transport operators is to identify errant workers, counsel them and give them a chance to shape up.
“What we should not do is to turn a blind eye to their act, or worse, follow them,” he added.
During his speech, Mr Khaw recognised the vital work that transport workers do, with the public transportation network expanding and an increase in the number of commuters taking trains and buses daily.
He said 66 per cent of Singaporeans take public transport daily, and the daily bus and rail rides have increased by 30 per cent to nearly eight million in five years.
Mr Khaw said the work has increased as new demands arose.
He gave the example of bus drivers having to coordinate with service controllers to pace their buses and reduce bunching, so that buses will arrive with greater punctuality.
continue reading here :
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapor...t-workers-says
Why now so many train faults ? Why now no more announcement on social media ? Why the news are not reporting ? Why can’t you solve all the problems at one go instead of reacting to a crisis ?
Commentary: Focus SMRT’s recovery on dealing with delays and disruptions decisively
SMRT’s efforts to address the tunnel flooding incident are laudable but the company should focus on productive ways to manage future delays and disruptions, says NUS Business School’s Dr Nitin Pangarkar
By Nitin Pangarkar
15 Nov 2017 06:30AM (Updated: 15 Nov 2017 06:40AM)
SINGAPORE: Recently, SMRT has come under criticism for issues ranging from train disruptions late last week leaving commuters angry over the lack of official announcements about the impending delays, to the more serious matter about the falsification of maintenance records by some of its employees that led to the MRT tunnel flooding in early October.
It seems neither commuters nor SMRT staff can catch a break.
While the company’s woes have been analysed from a variety of perspectives, many commentators have focused narrowly on specific issues such as the amnesty offered to staff to come clean and report gaps in processes, and the tunnel flooding incident.
Few have offered constructive suggestions on what SMRT management can do about its more problematic and pervasive challenge of dealing with seemingly more frequent delays and disruptions more decisively.
Having studied the responses of several other organisations such as Johnson and Johnson, BP and Singapore Airlines that have gone through crises, there are some guiding principles that may be instructive for SMRT management, in my opinion.
One of the first tasks of SMRT management should be to avoid knee-jerk reactions.
It is easy to paint with a broad brush and talk about broken culture. Not only is such talk demoralising for staff but it may also be inaccurate - after all, SMRT has received high praise from global surveys for its operational efficiency and service standards for many years.
SMRT’s internal communications bears repeating the key message that SMRT has a responsibility to provide safe and reliable transportation and any future breaches jeopardising safety or reliability will be dealt with in the strictest manner, with the concerned employees being held accountable.
But a more productive course of action is for SMRT management to determine whether the cheating incident was a localised break in culture or an organisation-wide malaise, and focus their recovery accordingly.
In doing so, the management also needs to make a distinction between factors that are controllable in the short run versus those that can be fixed only in the long run. Ageing equipment can cause breakdowns but that equipment can be replaced or upgraded only in the medium term since the service has to keep operating, posing constraints on quick replacement.
Read more at
Signalling fault causes morning delays on Circle Line
15 Nov 2017 06:55AM (Updated: 15 Nov 2017 07:20AM)
SINGAPORE: Train service along the Circle Line was delayed during the morning rush hour on Wednesday (Nov 15) due to a signalling fault, operator SMRT said.
In a tweet at 6.42am, SMRT urged commuters to cater for an additional 20 minutes of travel time between Farrer Road and Buona Vista stations.
SMRT advised commuters to add 20 minutes of additional travel time from Buona Vista and Harbourfront MRT stations, in both directions.
In another tweet at 7.09am, the train operator announced that free bus services were available between Botanic Gardens and Kent Ridge stations.
In an earlier tweet at 6.28am, SMRT said a signal fault had caused slower train service between Botanic Gardens and Haw Par Villa.
Read more at
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/...e-line-9406886
Really even new line also got problem . I wonder what is wrong with their signalling system ? Is it safe to travel on the mrt ? So how Mr Khaw ? Why don’t you set up a COI to once and for all to sole all these issues . Do you think it is fair to your commuters to be always late for their work and appointments ? So you still want to vote for PAP ?
Signal fault delays trains on Circle Line on Wednesday morning
PUBLISHED 20 MIN AGO
SINGAPORE - A signal fault held up service in both directions on the Circle Line on Wednesday (Nov 15) morning.
Rail operator SMRT first tweeted at 6.28am, warning commuters that trains are moving slower between Buona Vista and HarbourFront stations.
“We are investigating the fault,” it added.
Less than 15 minutes later, SMRT said to add 20 minutes’ travel time between the stations.
SMRT Corporation @SMRT_Singapore
[CCL]: Due to a Signal fault between #Farrer Road and # Buona Vista .Pls add 20mins train travel time between #Buona Vista and HarbourFornt on both bounds.
On Twitter, some commuters complained that trains were not moving at all.
The last major fault on the Circle Line occurred during the morning peak on Sept 11, when a train was rendered inoperable near Marymount station after emergency brakes were applied.
The faulty train had to be pushed out of the way by another train, affecting thousands of commuters on their way to work and school.
continue reading here :
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapor...nesday-morning
I wonder if commuters can sue SMRT or not ???