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SINGAPORE: Public transport operator SMRT’s S$3 million (US$2.34 million) fine imposed for last year’s East-West Line train service disruption has been cut to S$2.4 million, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said on Friday (Jul 25).
The authority has also directed SMRT to invest a minimum of S$600,000 to strengthen its capabilities and address areas of improvement from the incident to boost service reliability for commuters.
The S$2.4 million penalty will go to the Public Transport Fund to help lower-income families with their public transport expenses.
Last month, LTA announced it would slap SMRT with a S$3 million fine after an investigation into last September's six-day train disruption found lapses - including maintenance intervals being extended beyond stipulations - in part due to delays on new train arrivals caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The train in the incident was among 66 in SMRT's first-generation Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) fleet, which were rolled out in the late 1980s.
They were to be progressively replaced by new Movia trains starting from 2021, but due to the pandemic, there was a delay of 1.5 years, and the first Movia train was only handed over in 2023.
SMRT was required to continue carrying out regular maintenance for the KHI trains still in service, but by the time of the incident last September, only 18 KHI trains had been overhauled, with the train in the incident not among them.
"In reaching this decision, LTA took into consideration the considerable challenges SMRT had faced in planning and executing their overhaul regime for the KHI trains, particularly in procuring the necessary spare parts for the overhaul due to global supply chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic," LTA said on Friday.
"Singapore’s rail system continues to be one of the most reliable rail systems in the world. Since 2019, the mean kilometres between failure (MKBF) of our MRT network has remained above the one million train-km target."
The authority added that it will continue to work closely with tripartite partners to maintain the reliability of Singapore’s rail system and provide smooth and convenient rail journeys for commuters.
SMRT may appeal Friday’s decision to the Minister for Transport, who will either reject the appeal and confirm LTA’s decision, or allow the appeal and substitute or vary LTA's decision.
The Minister's decision on the appeal is final.
On Friday, SMRT's President Lam Sheau Kai noted LTA's directive for it to invest in its capabilities.
"Workforce development and upskilling have long been our core priorities for SMRT, and this directive is fully aligned with our ongoing commitment to invest in our staff," he wrote in a Facebook post.
On the challenges SMRT faced in overhauling the old KHI trains, Mr Lam added: "Had the pandemic not occurred, all KHI trains would have been replaced by the new (Movia) R151 trains as planned, and the incident might have been prevented.
"He added that SMRT will strengthen its direct engagement with original equipment manufacturers of trains and systems, and deepen its technical and engineering expertise through closer collaboration with these partners.
It will also work closely with LTA and train manufacturer Alstom to progressively roll out its new fleet of Movia trains and fully phase out the KHI trains by this September, Mr Lam said.
The operator did not elaborate on whether it would appeal against LTA's decision.
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