Parliament: Fault-prone Bukit Panjang LRT to be overhauled, says Ng Chee Meng
The design of the Bukit Panjang Light Rail Transit (BPLRT) system was adapted from one that was primarily used for straight-line travel and is prone to faults when taking “sharp turns over undulating terrain”.
This was revealed by Second Minister for Transport Ng Chee Meng in Parliament on Monday (2 October). He was responding to a question by Aljunied GRC Member of Parliament Pritam Singh on whether the 18-year-old BPLRT was built as an afterthought.
Ng also announced that a tender will be called for an overhaul of the BPLRT, with the contract to be awarded in the first half of next year. Elaborating on the BPLRT’s design, Ng said it had been adapted from one that was meant for “straight-line travel” to one that had to accommodate the “undulating terrain” of Bukit Panjang.
“The primary issue with the Bukit Panjang LRT is that the LRT design was adapted from the airport system… to a housing estate. This straight-lane design adapted to undulating and sharp turns caused power collector shoes to dislodge from the power rail,” he said. “We have taken a look at the design considerations and this will be addressed in the upcoming tender to address the reliability of the whole system.”
He added that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT have put in “significant efforts” to improve the system reliability and that the organisations are looking to extend engineering hours to address these additional works.
At an SMRT event in September, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan said the BPLRT, which opened in 1999 was built as an “after-thought” due to “political pressure”, according to media reports. Khaw also compared travelling on the BPLRT to riding a “roller-coaster” and that the LRT was designed in a “masochistic manner”.
Last year, the BPLRT suffered eight major delays of more than half an hour each. This year, it has experienced two major delays, including a service disruption of more than six hours on 9 September.
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