In a Facebook post yesterday (22 June), Transport Minister Mr Khaw Boon Wan officiated the start of the decommissioning of the first-generation Kawasaki Heavy Industries C151 (KHI) trains which ply the North-South and East-West Lines (NSEWL).
A Full Meaningful LifeJust now, I switched off the lights of one 33-year old Kawasaki train at Bishan Depot. It marked…
Posted by Khaw Boon Wan on Monday, 22 June 2020
These trains will be gradually replaced by the brand new Bombardier MOVIA R151 trains, slated to enter service from 2021. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) claims that the new trains would come with condition monitoring features to “detect and rectify potential fault” and would come with more open spaces.
Artist impression of the new Bombardier MOVIA R151 train (Photo: LTA)
The decommissioning of the KHI trains is certainly an emotional one from all of us at SGTrains as it, one way or another, sparked our curiosity on the train network. As the Chinese saying goes, “旧的不去新的不来” which loosely translates to “if you don’t let go of the old ones, the new wouldn’t come”.
While the KHI trains will slowly be decommissioned a train at a time, let’s hope its replacement would be able to live up to the legacy it left behind.
Click to learn more about the Bombardier MOVIA R151 trains »
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