Significant progress has been made in the recovery and replacement of damaged rails and trackside equipment following the major train disruption on the East-West Line (EWL).
This comes after favourable weather on Saturday (Sep 28), which aided track repair works for engineering teams from the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and rail operator SMRT.
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East-West Line track repair works are making progress
“Significant progress” has been made, tests to be conducted on Sunday
Workers transporting a new running rail using a mechanical jig. (Image: LTA/Facebook)
In a Facebook post on Saturday evening, SMRT said it has successfully recovered and completed functionality tests on three track point machines and associated trackside equipment.
It added it has also replaced the third rail, which supplies electrical power to trains, and restoration work is “fully completed”. SMRT said when repairs are finalised, it will conduct comprehensive system function and safety tests.
These tests include tests on the tracks, power supply, and signalling system. SMRT will also be running trains at different speeds to ensure smooth operations, and the process will take place the whole day on Sunday.
“As of 28 Sep, we have successfully recovered and completed functionality tests on three track point machines and associated trackside equipment. Power rails have also been replaced, and restoration work is fully completed.
“Once repairs are finalised, SMRT will conduct comprehensive system functional and safety tests, including checks on the tracks, power supply, and train signalling.
“We will also run trains at different speeds to ensure everything operates smoothly. This process will take the whole day tomorrow.”
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said in an earlier update on Saturday that its teams have been working through the night and morning and have “made significant progress”.
“We’ll continue replacing the cracked rails across the 1.6km stretch of track between Clementi and Dover stations, and repair the damaged track equipment,” it added.
Extensive damage to the track and trackside equipment
“A defective train axle box on one of our first-generation trains dropped and caused the wheels of a bogie to come off the running rail and hit track equipment” (Image: SMRT/Facebook)
Following overnight checks, engineers have found extensive damage to the track and trackside equipment, LTA and SMRT said in a joint news release on Thursday.
Damage to the track includes 34 rail breaks – including cracks or fractures – found across 1.6km of tracks between Dover (EW22) and Clementi (EW23) stations. Several Pandrol clips that fasten running rails onto the sleepers were also damaged.
Other trackside equipment that was damaged includes the third rail – which supplies direct-current electrical power of 750 volts to the trains – and three track point machines – which are used to divert trains to different tracks.
In pictures released by LTA, one of the three damaged point machines looks to be completely destroyed and, therefore, unsalvageable.
Investigations found that an axle box from a 1st-gen Kawasaki Heavy Industries C151 (KHI) train had “dropped”, causing one bogie to “come off the running rail” between Dover (EW22) and Clementi (EW23) stations. It is unclear whether this is related to the smoke emission.
The 35-year-old KHI train fleet has been undergoing retirement since 2020 and is being replaced by the 7th-gen Alstom Movia R151 trains, which first entered service last year.
The power fault caused another KHI train near Clementi station to stall, affecting over 850 commuters on board, all of which were safely disembarked onto the tracks and guided back to the station platform.
On Thursday night, LTA and SMRT scrapped plans to run a single-line shuttle train service at 20-minute intervals between Jurong East (EW24) and Buona Vista (EW21) stations.
LTA said: “It would mean slowing down the repairs on the parallel damaged rail as repairs cannot be done when the shuttle train service is in operation”. “On balance, it is better to prioritise repair and expedite restoring full service earlier, rather than run a 20-minute shuttle between Jurong East and Buona Vista stations.”
“SMRT is aiming to restore full service on Monday 30 September, and running the shuttle train could risk delaying full restoration by at least a few days.”
“Earlier, we had conveyed that we were exploring the possibility of operating a shuttle train service between Jurong East and Buona Vista stations. We had tried our best to make this option work by expediting the repairs on one of the tracks.
“We have since determined that it can be done, but it would mean slowing down the repairs on the parallel damaged rail as repairs cannot be done when the shuttle train service is in operation. On balance, it is better to prioritise repair and expedite restoring full service earlier, rather than run a 20-minute shuttle between Jurong East and Buona Vista stations.
“SMRT is aiming to restore full service on Monday 30 September, and running the shuttle train could risk delaying full restoration by at least a few days.”
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Related Links
Kawasaki Heavy Industries C151 – SGTrains
East-West Line – SGTrains
Train Service Status – SGTrains
External Links
🚧 Recovery Works Update (28 Sep) 🚧 – SMRT/Facebook
#BehindTheScenes of the ongoing #EWL recovery works.🔧 – LTA/Facebook
Joint News Release by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) & SMRT – No Train Service on the East-West Line from Jurong East to Buona Vista on 27 September – LTA
No Train Service on the East-West Line from Jurong East to Buona Vista on 27 September – SMRT
Joint News Release by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) & SMRT – Update on East-West Line Recovery Works – LTA
Update on East-West Line Recovery Works – SMRT
Images: LTA/Facebook, LTA/Facebook, LTA/Facebook, SMRT/Facebook.
This article first appeared on SGTrains.
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