The Downtown Line 2 (DTL2) is opening as planned on Dec 27th - a feat Land Transport Authority (LTA) project directors Ng Kee Nam and Tan Kian Thong credited to the ingenuity, team spirit and derring-do of workers and engineers involved, reported The Straits Times.
In 2013, Austrian builder Alpine Bau, the main contractor for a three-station stretch on the Downtown Line (DTL), went bust. Overnight, work along 2.1km of the DTL ground to a halt.
"This was quite unexpected. Progress was good and we had no signs," said Mr. Ng, Deputy Group Director of Rail (Civil), adding that when contractors go bust, there were often warning signs - such as fewer workers turning up at the worksite or suppliers showing up to cart away equipment. But with Alpine Bau, there was none of that. It meant the DTL2, which would link the north-western corridor to the Marina downtown area, would not be able to open as planned by this year. Optimistic estimates added six months to the deadline because of the company's insolvency.
However, two years on, the DTL2 is opening as planned. The workers and engineers pulled additional shifts, sometimes working round the clock, and took calculated risks to get the job done, said Mr. Ng.
The combined effort clawed back time, but it was only in June, when work was about 95 percent done, that engineers were confident they could stick to schedule.
