SMRT did not seek approval for previous charters

SINGAPORE — A day after it admitted it had not obtained approval before letting Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) charter five trains for a schools rugby final, SMRT said yesterday this had been done many times in the past — it did not seek permission from the Land Transport Authority (LTA) for its charters to transport “tens of thousands” of students from many schools to National Education shows in previous years.

“The charters are not without precedent. Tens of thousands of students from many schools have experienced similar charters done in support of National Education shows in recent years — all moved efficiently and safely, and without fuss,” SMRT Trains managing director Lee Ling Wee wrote on the operator’s Facebook page. “No permission was sought from the LTA in these charters.”

Noting that the response from ACS(I) students was “terrific”, Mr Lee also said SMRT encourages more schools to charter its trains during off-peak hours should they need to transport a large group of students. “All things considered, we feel the effort was genuine and worthwhile as it transported a large number of students efficiently and safely. Going forward, we will keep the relevant agencies updated on such arrangements,” he said.

LTA was unable to respond by press time yesterday.

SMRT did not seek approval in the past for the chartered trips to the National Education shows which are held during National Day Parade rehearsals, but TODAY understands the LTA did not require it because the authority is involved in the organisation of the National Day Parades and would know of SMRT’s plans beforehand.

On Wednesday, the LTA issued a statement to say SMRT “has explained to the LTA why they went ahead and acknowledged that prior approval should have been sought”.

Its spokesperson reiterated that the operator is required to obtain the LTA’s approval to run trains for non-public transport purposes as the LTA is responsible for ensuring that train services to the public are provided as scheduled and that any extra trips in the network do not affect such services.

Adding that the normal Circle Line train services were unaffected, Mr Lee said yesterday: “The story may have been different had 3,000 students descended on the Circle Line with no prior notice at the same time, without crowd control measures in place, catching commuters and our station staff by surprise. Prior notice by ACS(I) allowed SMRT to put in place crowd control measures.”

The trains were chartered by ACS(I) to transport 3,000 of its students and staff on Tuesday to the match, the first school final to be held at the new National Stadium at the Sports Hub.

Mr Lee said SMRT was able to insert the five chartered trains in the network because it was during the off-peak period.

“The nature of operations on the Circle Line is such that while the current train fleet is insufficient to meet commuter demands during morning and evening peak periods, the overall average train capacity utilised throughout the day is only 20 to 30 per cent,” he said. ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY KELLY NG