Train services disrupted along entire Thomson-East Coast Line due to signalling fault, says SMRT

SINGAPORE: Train services along the entire Thomson-East Coast Line were disrupted for more than three hours on Wednesday morning (Jul 6).

There were no services in both directions due to a signalling fault, said SMRT in a Facebook post, adding that the disruption started at around 8.05am.

Six trains stalled and commuters on board got off safely at their nearest stations, said the transport operator. 

"There was full lighting and ventilation in the stalled train while the commuters were on-board," said SMRT, adding that engineers have been deployed to fix the issue.

Free regular and bridging bus services were activated. In a tweet, SMRT also advised passengers to travel along the North-South and Circle lines.

"Additional staff have been deployed to assist with crowd management. We are sorry to have affected commuters' peak-hour journeys," said SMRT.

In an update at about 11.35am, SMRT tweeted that train services between Woodlands North and Caldecott have resumed.

There are nine stations operating along the Thomson-East Coast Line, stretching from Woodlands North to Caldecott. The first three stations - Woodlands, Woodlands North and Woodlands South - opened to the public in January 2020, while six began passenger service in August 2021 in stage 2 of the line.

The opening of stage 2 was delayed twice, first due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The second delay came after the Land Transport Authority conducted a system review following a five-hour disruption on the line in December 2020 due to a signalling fault. 

Eleven more stations along Thomson-East Coast Line, including those running through Stevens, Orchard and Outram Park, are expected to start service in the second half of this year.