NEL power fault affects 41,000 commuters in morning peak
27 Oct 2015|1,892 views
A new train that was being tested pulled a wire on the North East Line's (NEL) overhead power system, causing the nearly two hour disruption that affected the morning peak period yesterday, affecting about 41,000 commuters, reported The Straits Times.
Land Transport Authority (LTA) Chief Executive Chew Men Leong said the train was being withdrawn to Sengkang depot when the incident happened at about 5:00am. The train tugged onto the overhead power system, called the overhead catenary system, snapping one of the wires which, as a result, caused a power fault across the entire NEL.
He said it was one of two new trains being tested over the past few weeks, and this was the first time such a problem cropped up. Why the train affected the overhead system will be investigated, he told the media at Hougang MRT station yesterday morning. Tests on the two trains will be suspended as the LTA investigates the problem.
SBS Transit Chief Executive Gan Juay Kiat, who was also at Hougang station yesterday, called the disruption a "very major incident" as it was the first time both the north and south-bound services on the NEL were down simultaneously. To cope with the situation, 110 shuttle buses were activated while SMRT and SBS Transit made bus services free islandwide until normal train service resumed.
LTA, SBS Transit and TransitLink said commuters who paid for their bus rides yesterday morning, when the NEL service was down, can seek a refund over the next seven days until Monday. This refers to anyone who took a ride on all public buses between 5:23am and 9:30am.
A new train that was being tested pulled a wire on the North East Line's (NEL) overhead power system, causing the nearly two hour disruption that affected the morning peak period yesterday, affecting about 41,000 commuters, reported The Straits Times.
Land Transport Authority (LTA) Chief Executive Chew Men Leong said the train was being withdrawn to Sengkang depot when the incident happened at about 5:00am. The train tugged onto the overhead power system, called the overhead catenary system, snapping one of the wires which, as a result, caused a power fault across the entire NEL.
He said it was one of two new trains being tested over the past few weeks, and this was the first time such a problem cropped up. Why the train affected the overhead system will be investigated, he told the media at Hougang MRT station yesterday morning. Tests on the two trains will be suspended as the LTA investigates the problem.
SBS Transit Chief Executive Gan Juay Kiat, who was also at Hougang station yesterday, called the disruption a "very major incident" as it was the first time both the north and south-bound services on the NEL were down simultaneously. To cope with the situation, 110 shuttle buses were activated while SMRT and SBS Transit made bus services free islandwide until normal train service resumed.
LTA, SBS Transit and TransitLink said commuters who paid for their bus rides yesterday morning, when the NEL service was down, can seek a refund over the next seven days until Monday. This refers to anyone who took a ride on all public buses between 5:23am and 9:30am.
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