Congestion on Jurong East MRT platform after track circuit fault near station

SINGAPORE — Commuters travelling on the North-South Line (NSL) during Thursday (Dec 7) evening peak hour were caught in a congestion on the platform at Jurong East MRT station, following a track circuit fault near the station.

“Due to a track circuit fault near Jurong East MRT station this evening, only one platform was available for commuters on the North-South Line,” said SMRT’s vice-president for corporate communications Patrick Nathan in a media statement.

“While there were no delays to train arrival timings, commuters experienced congestion on the platform.”

Mr Nathan said announcements were made at the train stations to keep commuters informed of the situation. Station staff were also deployed to guide commuters.

No announcements or updates, however, were made via social media.

“We apologise to commuters for this delay in their overall travel time,” said Mr Nathan.

Thursday’s track circuit fault comes just a day before some MRT stations along the East-West Line (EWL) and the NSL will be closed earlier to allow the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT more time to access the tracks and carry out engineering works.

From three hours each night, the time will more than double to 7.5 hours.

Starting from Friday to Dec 31, 17 stations along the EWL, from Tiong Bahru to Tuas Link, as well as the Bukit Batok and Bukit Gombak stations on the NSL, will close earlier on Fridays and Saturdays at 11pm. These stations will also open later on Saturdays and Sundays at 8am.

The shortened operating hours will affect about 20,000 to 30,000 commuters each day.

There will also be full-Sunday closures on these stretches on Dec 10 and 17.

In the absence of train services, shuttle buses will be provided along the routes affected. Fares for these shuttle buses will follow the rail fare structure.