As part of ongoing efforts to revitalise our existing rail lines, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has been renewing our existing trains and injecting new trains into the MRT network. This will help to improve rail reliability and provide additional capacity to meet growing commuter demand, especially on our oldest North-South and East-West Lines (NSEWL).
Expanding and Renewing the NSEWL Train Fleet
2. When the NSEWL commenced operations in 1987, it was supported by a fleet of 66 six-car trains. Over the years, more trains were added to the network, including 57 new trains progressively put into service between 2017 and 2019. This has benefited commuters through better reliability and smoother rides.
3. Of the new 57 trains, 12 of them will carry LTA’s logo for the first time and be the first in Singapore to incorporate tip-up seats, which will provide more standing space for commuters during peak hours, if needed. All 12 trains will also come with an improved Current Collector Device (CCD) shear-off detection feature to provide timely alerts if any of the CCD shoes unexpectedly lose contact with the third rail. (Refer to the Annexes for more details on these new features.)
4. 47 trains have been delivered, with the last 10 due by the end of this year. By then, the NSEWL would have a fleet of 198 trains – three times the size of the starting fleet.
5. LTA also intends to retire the NSEWL’s original fleet of 66 trains which have been serving commuters for more than 30 years. The contract for these new trains will be awarded in the second quarter of this year, and the trains are expected to undergo rigorous testing before entering passenger service from 2022. This will complete the renewal of the NSEWL train fleet.
Figure 1: Number of trains across MRT lines
Significant Investments in Renewing Rail Assets
6. In addition to the 57 new NSEWL trains, 24 new Circle Line (CCL) trains and 18 new North East Line (NEL) trains have also been put in passenger service since 2015. This brings the total number of new trains for NSEWL, CCL and NEL to 99, at a cost of about $1.1 billion.
Annex A: Arrival of 12 new trains in LTA livery
Annex B: Design features of the new C151C Trains
