More SMRT trains observed using new 4-language ‘Please mind the platform gap’ announcement

If you have frequently been taking the MRT, specifically travelling on SMRT-run North-South, East-West, and Circle lines, you might have noticed a change to the in-train announcements when approaching stations on arrival.

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New four-language ‘Please mind the platform gap’ announcements

Rail operator SMRT has been rolling out an update to the announcement format of ‘Please mind the platform gap’ when trains approach stations on arrival.

The new announcement format involves using four languages – English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil – to announce ‘Please mind the platform gap’ after the station name has been broadcast on arrival. SMRT previously announced it only in English.

In addition, the new format also includes the new ‘Please mind the platform gap’ in four languages on the arrival of above-ground stations of the North-South, East-West lines (NSEWL). This would previously have only been announced at underground stations.

It is understood that the new announcement format was first implemented between late January and early February this year on some SMRT trains, before rolling out to more trains.

Though only the new 7th-gen Alstom Movia R151 trains on the NSEWL do not have this new format yet, and it is still not clear whether they will receive the update in the near or immediate future, as they even lack SMRT’s new jingle chimes, implemented in 2024.

Initial teething issues on the Circle and Thomson-East Coast lines

Circle Line MRT platform gap. (Image: SGTrains)

However, the roll-out was not without a hiccup for a seemingly minor format update, especially on the Circle Line (CCL).

There were a few instances where, due to the longer length of the audio file for accommodating ‘Please mind the platform gap’ in four languages, the Malay and Tamil portions were inadvertently cut short, as ‘Doors are closing’ was broadcast for departure.

In particular, these instances include interchange stations with long preceding transfer announcements – ‘Change at this station for…’ – and shorter-than-usual dwell times at the station, due to timetabling and scheduling, on the driverless and unattended MRT line.

This teething issue with the announcement format on the CCL has been rectified following a tweak to the sequence, where ‘Please mind the platform gap’ is now broadcast while the train is slowing down for arrival, instead of the short timespan when train doors are open.

Trains on the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) have recently started receiving the new announcement format, albeit they are also facing teething issues similar to the CCL.

Such teething issues include having transfer announcements pushed all the way after doors fully open, caused by the lengthy four-language ‘Please mind the platform gap’,

This occurs as TEL has its transfer announcements sequenced differently from other SMRT-run lines. The transfer announcements are broadcast only after the second instance of the arrival station name on TEL, whereas other SMRT-run lines do so after the first.

Both rail operators, SMRT and SBS Transit, now align and use four languages

Downtown Line MRT platform gap. (Image: SGTrains)

The new ‘Please mind the platform gap’ in the four languages format in SMRT trains now aligns with rail operator SBS Transit, operating the North East and Downtown lines. The latter has been using the four-language format since its implementation in 2008 and 2009.

Thus, it remains unclear whether the new format is an initiative by SMRT or part of a broader standardisation in format through the Land Transport Authority, the regulating body.

The four-language, multilingual ‘Please mind the platform gap’ is a welcome change, considering that it uses the country’s four official languages and would better emphasise the safety of commuters, especially the elderly, when alighting from the train.

There are some differences between the two operators’ versions. SBS Transit has been using ‘请小心空隙’ (qing xiao xin kong xi) and ‘berhati-hati di ruang platform’, while SMRT now uses ‘请注意月台空隙’ (qing zhu yi yue tai kong xi) and ‘sila berhati-hati ruang di platform’.

SBS Transit has also been using ‘please mind the gap’, and SMRT has ‘please mind the platform gap’. In Tamil, both are similar, ‘தயவு செய்து தளம் மேடை இடைவெளியை கவனத்தில் கொள்ளுங்கள்’ (Tayavu seytu talam metai idaiveliyai kavanattil kollungal).

Despite the variations in the wording between the two rail operators, the message conveyed to commuters remains fundamentally the same.

When SMRT irons out all teething issues to sound more natural, commuters would, perhaps, be more ‘happy happy to be on the platform’ (common mishearing of SBS Transit’s ‘berhati-hati di ruang platform’ – ‘Please mind the gap’ in Malay).

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External Links
“C151A 537/538 Approaching Tampines with 4 Language “Please Mind the Platform Gap” announcements.” – Singapore Transportation 2581/YouTube
“Singapore North-East Line to Punggol Terminal (2/2)” – Caveat Doctor/YouTube
“Happy Happy” on the Singapore MRT – Awesomewave.net

Images: SGTrains.
This article first appeared on SGTrains.
Last updated on 22 Jun 2025.