East West Line Track Point Fault stalls morning commute

Train services on the East-West Line were delayed due to a track point fault near Clementi this morning (Wednesday 19 Sep 2018), causing delays across the entire line since morning peak hours.

Normal train services have resumed. (Updated 1400hrs, 19/9/2018)

At about 7am on Wednesday (19 Sep) a track fault occurred on the East-West Line between Clementi and Jurong East MRT stations. Train services had to be stopped between both stations to allow our staff to go onto the track to check on the fault.

Free bus services and bridging buses were activated between Commonwealth and Boon Lay stations. This is also the first time SMRT’s Task Force 50 (TF50) was activated to provide bridging bus services.

Timeline

• ~0700hrs, 19 September 2018 – Track Point fault occurred near Ulu Pandan Train Depot & Clementi MRT Station
• 0710hrs – SMRT announced a 30 minute delay in train service between Clementi and Jurong East due to a Track Point Fault near Clementi. Free regular bus services available at designated bus stops near MRT stations between Jurong East and Queenstown
• 0714hrs – Free regular bus services available at designated bus stops near MRT stations between Boon Lay and Queenstown
• 0726hrs – Free Bridging Buses activated between Boon Lay and Queenstown
• 0740hrs – Additional 30 minutes train travelling time between Boon Lay and Queenstown
• 0815hrs – Additional 40 minutes train travelling time between Boon Lay and Queenstown
• 1227hrs – Additional 30 minutes train travelling time between Boon Lay and Queenstown
• 1335hrs – Track point fault rectified, additional 15 minutes train travelling time between Boon Lay and Queenstown
• 1400hrs – Train service resumed

Track Works

Track works were performed between Jurong East and Clementi, where SMRT maintenance staff were spotted working along the tracks near Ulu Pandan Train Depot. Trains passing by the affected sector are required to operate in Restricted Manual mode, at speeds no more than 18km/h.

SMRT’s Response

SMRT posted a statement regarding the incident as well as several updates on their Facebook Page.

Confusion at Jurong East

With this month’s weekend Early Closures and Late Openings still ongoing, some commuters at Jurong East were confused by the shuttle bus posters. Some commuters followed signs leading to the pickup point for Shuttle 2 (towards Joo Koon) at Venture Avenue as the signs were not covered during weekdays. However, Shuttle 2 was not operating during the track point fault, and the bridging bus service pick-up point was at Jurong East Temporary Bus Interchange instead.

Islandwide Delays

While SMRT reported that the affected sector was between Boon Lay and Queenstown, train services slowed to a halt throughout the entire line.

There were also reports that commuters were denied entry at various East-West Line Stations such as Tampines and Pasir Ris.

Several westbound trains had to be turned around at Queenstown MRT Station to supplement eastbound train service.