SMRT has assured the public that recent train service disruptions across multiple MRT lines are unrelated events and do not reflect systemic faults in Singapore’s rail network.
“These are isolated cases, not systemic issues,” said Lam Sheau Kai, President of SMRT Trains, during a media address on 17 September 2025.
Speaking to reporters without taking any questions, Lam said SMRT is working closely with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to strengthen long-term rail reliability. Planned measures include technical audits, infrastructure upgrades, and improvements to fault recovery processes.
Lam stated that in each of the recent incidents, SMRT staff acted swiftly to ensure commuter safety and activate recovery measures, including the deployment of free bus bridging services.
“To reinforce reliability, we will strengthen lifecycle management of our rail system and accelerate asset renewal and upgrading where needed,” he said during the media briefing.
He added that SMRT will conduct comprehensive technical audits of critical systems such as power, signalling, train and track infrastructure.
These audits aim to identify operational gaps and enhance incident response protocols.
Acknowledging that safety checks during incidents typically require two to three hours, Lam noted that SMRT would explore methods to reduce recovery time without compromising safety.
Communication shortcomings and remedial action
Public dissatisfaction with SMRT’s communication during disruptions, especially on the Thomson–East Coast Line (TEL), was also addressed.
Lam admitted there was “room for improvement on ground communications” and said the operator would work with LTA to enhance incident updates and station-level responses.
Since the start of September, SMRT has deployed enhanced crowd management strategies at major interchanges, with staff using new tools to guide commuters during peak periods.
Despite this, Lam did not take questions from the media, leaving several concerns about accountability and future breakdowns unaddressed.
TEL fault sparks frustration
On 17 September, a signalling fault disrupted TEL services from 7.10am.
While SMRT announced a 30-minute suspension, full recovery took over two hours. Passengers, however, reported issues as early as 6.30am.
Many commuters criticised the operator for underplaying the disruption’s scale.
SMRT’s initial alert at 7.29am suggested only a 15-minute delay, with the full extent of the fault communicated more than an hour later.
One commuter described the situation as “a disaster”, citing overcrowded buses and delays extending well beyond initial projections. Another commuter reported taking over an hour to travel a few stations.
Social media commentary was sharply critical of the operator’s early messaging, accusing SMRT of misleading commuters by not immediately reflecting the scale of the disruption.
Wider context of disruptions
The TEL fault came less than 12 hours after another fault affected East–West Line services on the night of 16 September. That incident involved a power supply issue affecting six stations.
Over the past two weeks, several other lines have experienced faults:
- On 13 September, the Punggol LRT saw a system failure lasting three hours.
- On 2 September, the North–South Line suffered a 25-minute delay due to a train fault.
- On 6 August, a five-hour breakdown on the East–West Line stranded passengers across the network.
- On 12 and 15 August, the Sengkang–Punggol LRT experienced two prolonged disruptions caused by power faults.
- July saw at least three disruptions across the TEL and Bukit Panjang LRT lines.
According to LTA figures released on 5 September, MRT reliability dropped to its lowest level in five years.
From July 2024 to June 2025, trains clocked an average of 1.6 million train-kilometres between service delays exceeding five minutes — the shortest distance since 2020.
LTA uses the Mean Kilometres Between Failures (MKBF) metric to monitor reliability. The network currently meets its target of 1 million train-km MKBF, but recent trends suggest declining performance.
Government and public reactions
Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow acknowledged public concerns following the spate of incidents.
In an earlier Facebook post on 6 August, Siow described the situation as “disappointing”, and assured the public that transport operators “can and will do better”.
He added that the broader “One Transport family” — comprising SMRT, LTA and other stakeholders — remains committed to improving network reliability.
Meanwhile, industry commentators have raised the possibility of deeper issues, including manpower shortages in rail engineering and maintenance.
Some suggested structured engineering traineeships, with competitive salaries of about S$3,000, to attract new talent and build long-term operational resilience.
Other proposals included setting measurable reliability goals, such as limiting major disruptions to no more than one a month, to restore public confidence.
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