[Breaking] SMRT Trains Collide

[Guppies Onli]

Just heard from a very reliable source that our *Universal Studio* here is closing down before year end. Those with multiple entry tickets, please optimize them right away.
I heard they are closing down because everyone has switched to the *MRT rides*. It has all the elements of anxiety, shock and thrill (including floods). And furthermore, it’s so much cheaper.. Latest known they have bumper train too!!😆

[hkh]

It's a dark day in our MRT history........a series of delays follow by a langa accident........wonder how can KBW and Desmond Kuek sleep well tonight........

[lenghan]

Software glitches????
OMG!!!!
How they twist and turn and come up with excuses.
Glitches or not...it is still INCOMPETENCE
And when incompetence comes into play, someone should be held responsible.
And so now it is the IT Department's turn to be arrowed???
Never in their frame of mind that the very top people should step up and accept responsibilities.
Always those below them are arrowed and these people will never be able to give their side of the story.
Isn't it about time LHL make a stand on these happenings with our trains???
Or he has no clue what the fxxx is happening.

[millenium]

Originally Posted by hkh

It's a dark day in our MRT history........a series of delays follow by a langa accident........wonder how can KBW and Desmond Kuek sleep well tonight........

I just read on yahoo that ng chee meng has visited the victims and was glad that they were understanding.

[millenium]

Originally Posted by lenghan

Software glitches????
OMG!!!!
How they twist and turn and come up with excuses.
Glitches or not...it is still INCOMPETENCE
And when incompetence comes into play, someone should be held responsible.
And so now it is the IT Department's turn to be arrowed???
Never in their frame of mind that the very top people should step up and accept responsibilities.
Always those below them are arrowed and these people will never be able to give their side of the story.
Isn't it about time LHL make a stand on these happenings with our trains???
Or he has no clue what the fxxx is happening.

Meaning they cannot out blame on the drivers.

[foxwagon]

The old man said before.
Water, electricity, gas, everything must work.
If it didn't, he would fire the chief
It was very easy to fire a chief if he was not happy with the performance

[stargazer]

A software glitch in the East-West Line (EWL) signalling system was behind Wednesday (15 November) morning’s collision at Joo Koon station, according to preliminary findings by the Land Transport Authority (LTA), train operator SMRT and French conglomerate Thales.

At about 8.18am, a train heading towards Tuas Link station stopped at Joo Koon station to detrain passengers due to a fault in the train signalling system. At 8.19am, a second train stopped 10.7m behind the first train, in accordance with the existing safety protocol for safe stopping distance between two trains.

A minute late, the first train’s doors closed but before it could move off, the second train was activated by the signalling system and moved forward, hitting the first train at a speed of 16kmh.

The first train was found to have departed Ulu Pandan Depot with a software protection feature but this was removed when it passed by a faulty signalling circuit. As such, when the train arrived at Joo Koon station, its profile on the new Communication-Based Train Control (CBTC) signalling system showed it as a three-car train instead of a six-car train.

Consequently, the second train misjudged the distance between the two, thereby causing the collision.

This information was shared with the media by LTA deputy chief executive Chua Chong Kheng at a press conference held on Wednesday evening at SMRT’s headquarters along North Bridge Road.

Chua emphasised that investigations were still ongoing as to why the software protection feature had been removed.

Checks will be conducted on the whole network that uses the CBTC system, he said, but emphasis would be placed on the EWL, which is undergoing the transition from the older system to the new one.

The EWL currently runs on the older signalling system from Pasir Ris to Pioneer stations, and on the new system from Joo Koon to Tuas Link. As a precautionary measure, all trains will undergo an additional layer of control measures and manual checks before they are deployed.

Operations from Joo Koon to Tuas Link stations will also be suspended for the whole of Thursday (16 November) for Thales, the French conglomerate that is supplying the new signalling system, LTA and SMRT to conduct checks. Bus bridging services will also be deployed for the affected stretch.

Other precautions being taken include reminders to be sent to train captains to be “a lot more vigilant” even if they are driving the trains in automatic mode, said Alvin Kek, SMRT’s senior vice-president for rail operations (North-South East-West Lines).

“Secondly, we have increased the separation of the trains, the distance between the trains travelling on both lines,” he added, referring to both the EWL and North-South Line (NSL). This will result in a lengthened train headway, which refers to the time between trains at stations.

The train headway has been increased from 2 minutes to “2.5 or 3 minutes”, said Kek, who added that the new measure was implemented on Wednesday afternoon.

Signalling systems still operationally safe

Thales has confirmed that the old and new signalling systems continue to be safe for operation, said Chua.

According to Thales representative Peter Tawn, who was also at the conference, the safety distance that the system allows for between trains differs according to the speed at which they are travelling.

“It’s a dynamic signalling system… the slower it goes, the closer they can be together, the faster the trains are travelling, the greater the distance,” Tawn said.

Kek said that while there are systems in place that allow captains to halt the trains in emergency situations, investigations are still being conducted to assess whether the driver of the second train had enough time to react given the short distance between the trains.

There were only 10 seconds between when the second train started moving and when it came into contact with the first train, he noted.

Injured passengers

It was also revealed that the captain of the second train was one of the two SMRT staff injured in the accident, the other being an assistant station manager who had helped to detrain passengers.

All the injured commuters were from the second train while there was no injured in the first train as commuters have detrained from it. In total, 28 people were injured in the accident, 15 of whom have received medical attention at the National University Hospital and the remainder having been attended to at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital.

Most of the injuries were related to knocks, falls and bruises, with one passenger suffering a broken tooth and another having fainted, Chua said.

When asked about which party should take responsibility for the collision, Chua said, “We are looking to Thales in terms of the solution, and also to convince SMRT and (LTA) that the system is safe… We will work as a team but, primarily, the responsibility for the signalling safety is with the supplier.”

Regarding the safety of the Thales’ system, Tawn said “We’ve never had an incident of this nature. In fact, the CBTC system … has been, I think, on record one of the safest systems. We’ve never had a collision.”

The last such front-to-back train collision took place in August 1993 at Clementi station, which left 156 people injured. In the wake of the accident, an independent inquiry panel was formed to look into the matter and SMRT subsequently revised some of its operating procedures.

[burntrubber]

" After the trains came into contact, some passengers positioned themselves on the cabin floor due to momentary loss of balance and gravitational force."

Like that can?

[globalcookie]

End of the day, blame the driver and the software company. But never blame the CEO and Chairman. They are safe. Hara Kiri? What's that? KBW, u really are master of twisting words!

We have a CLOWN!

[coryfav]

Originally Posted by burntrubber

" After the trains came into contact, some passengers positioned themselves on the cabin floor due to momentary loss of balance and gravitational force."

Like that can?

OMG!!!

When I read the first part yesterday, I was already and now this "positioned themselves on the cabin floor" ...

Why do I have a feeling they've got (employed) someone to specially write these stuff?