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Tag: Ministry of Transport

  • Osman Sulaiman: Train Defects Saga Shows Limits Of Local Mainstream Media, Lack Of Government Accountability & Transparency

    Osman Sulaiman: Train Defects Saga Shows Limits Of Local Mainstream Media, Lack Of Government Accountability & Transparency

    Most of us would have heard the news about our SMRT trains being exported back to China because of ‘superficial’ hairline cracks.

    Apparently, LTA says that it is of no concern. It tried to downplay the defect. It also mentioned that repair of the trains will take about 7 years and later on clarified that it will take between 3-7 years.

    Interestingly, the news was first reported by foreign media and not by our mainstream media who is supposed to be the citizens first point ofinformation.

    Either they (journalists) are incompetent to sniff out such infos or someone in charge is holding back information to cover up this mess.

    Instead of taking those responsible over these purchases and do a full inquiry, it has decided to keep the matter unknown to the public and hush up these activities (train defects) in an attempt to cover up.

    As these issues involves the life of millions of commuters, it is important that the public is informed of such matters. Afterall, Singaporeans have a stake in the transport system and billions of public funds were used to purchase these trains.

    Our government is never known for its transparency. Where the late LKY would have taken out to dry those responsible over major mishaps, the current leadership has developed a system of shielding those who are responsible.

    Without transparency and a functioning media, we are at the mercy of those who are in position to manipulate the people for its own benefit.

     

    Source: Khan Osman Sulaiman

  • Lui Tuck Yew To Step Down From Politics, Will Not Stand In Coming Elections

    Lui Tuck Yew To Step Down From Politics, Will Not Stand In Coming Elections

    With the General Election (GE) around the corner, the Prime Minister’s Office unexpectedly announced today (Aug 11) that Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew will step down from politics and not stand in the coming elections.

    In a letter dated today, Mr Lui wrote to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to confirm his decision, which he said was taken “with deep regret”, not to stand for re-election in the coming GE — having broached the subject with Mr Lee “early this year”.

    In his reply to Mr Lui, Mr Lee praised Mr Lui’s work as Transport Minister and said he accepted the decision “reluctantly”. He added that he was disappointed that he failed to change Mr Lui’s mind and persuade him to stay on. “My senior colleagues share my view that you have more to contribute, both in transport and in other areas in government. We discussed the matter with you several times, but could not persuade you to continue,” he said. “So I have no choice but to accept your decision not to stand for election again.”

    Mr Lee pointed out that Mr Lui has “done very good work” helming the transport portfolio. “You put your heart and soul into the task. As a result, we made significant progress over the last four years”, he said.
    Mr Lee said Mr Lui has “contributed crucially to this progress”, citing his role in setting policies, implementing major projects and supervising the public transport network’s operations. Mr Lui has put in place many improvements whose benefits can be seen only in the coming years, Mr Lee noted. “The job is not yet complete, as we are reminded from time to time when train services break down. But despite these incidents, I am confident that we are heading in the right direction, to get the public transport system that Singaporeans deserve,” the Prime Minister said.

    In his letter, Mr Lui acknowledged that Mr Lee and several senior members of the Cabinet tried hard to persuade him to change his mind.

    Mr Lui said: “You reminded me that the responsibility of Government was a collective one, and no minister carried difficult problems like public transport alone. I deeply appreciate the reassurance and support. But having thought the matter over carefully, I have decided that I should stand by my original decision.”

    He noted that Mr Lee had conveyed the intention to re-appoint him as a Cabinet Minister if he was re-elected. But the GE “also provides an opportunity for me to step back from politics without causing any major disruption to Government at the end of its term”, Mr Lui said.

    ‘I HAVE PUT MY UTMOST INTO FULFILLING MY RESPONSIBILITIES’

    Mr Lui, who was formerly Chief of Navy and chief executive of the Housing and Development Board, entered politics in 2006 and was elected as a Member of Parliament for Tanjong Pagar Group Representation Constituency (GRC), where the People’s Action Party (PAP) had a walkover.

    In the 2011 GE, he was part of the PAP team which won Moulmein-Kallang GRC with 58.6 per cent of the votes, beating off the challenge of the Workers’ Party. Soon after the 2011 GE, where transport was among the hotly-debated topics during the hustings, Mr Lui was appointed Transport Minister, taking over from Mr Raymond Lim.

    About six months into the job, Mr Lui had to handle two massive breakdowns on the North-South Line on Dec 15 and 17, which led to the setting up of a Committee of Inquiry. Between then and now, the rail system has continued to be dogged by disruptions. The disruption early last month, deemed Singapore’s most serious rail disruption, halted both the North-South and East-West Lines for about three hours during the evening peak, affecting some 250,000 commuters.

    Under Mr Lui’s charge, the Ministry of Transport (MOT) and Land Transport Authority (LTA) ramped up capacity for buses and trains. Under the Bus Service Enhancement Programme, 550 buses were injected, with 450 more to be added by 2017.

    More new trains and new rail lines have been introduced. For instance, the Jurong Region Line and Cross Island Line will be ready by 2025 and 2030 respectively. The entire Downtown Line will open by 2017.
    In his letter, Mr Lui made reference to these improvements, pointing out that train delays and withdrawals across all lines have been reduced, and waiting times for buses have dropped. But he acknowledged that they have “had some setbacks”.

    “Large-scale or prolonged disruptions still happen more frequently than is acceptable,” he said. “We have embarked on major upgrades and initiated further efforts in the last quarter to identify additional areas that need systematic renewal and strengthen overall maintenance practices. Given the nature and scale of our rail network, these improvements will take time,” he added.

    “But the measures we have put in place will allow our problems to be progressively dealt with and resolved. I am proud of the good work my team and MOT and LTA have done. I have put my utmost into fulfilling my responsibilities.”

    LUI ‘SERVED WITH HONOUR AND DISTINCTION’: DPM TEO 

    Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, in a statement, thanked Mr Lui “for serving, and being ready to take on challenging tasks”. Mr Teo said: “I have known Tuck Yew for more than thirty years, since he was a young officer. He has served with honour and distinction, and has brought commitment, an analytical mind, and compassion and concern for people to every responsibility he has undertaken.”

    Mr Teo – who has known Mr Lui for more than 30 years and had encouraged him to enter politics – noted that since Mr Lui was elected in 2006, he has served the residents of Moulmein division and in a number of different portfolios.

    “As the Minister for Transport since 2011, he has put all his energy into improving our transport system. The programmes he implemented have begun to show results and will in time improve our transport system significantly,” said Mr Teo, adding that he spoke to Mr Lui “to ask him to continue” but was unable to change his mind.

    “I understand and respect his reasons,” said Mr Teo. “Tuck Yew has much to offer in whatever he pursues. I wish Tuck Yew, Soo Fen, and their family good health and much happiness.”

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • Lui Tuck Yew: Displeased Over Disruption, No Women-Only Cabins

    Lui Tuck Yew: Displeased Over Disruption, No Women-Only Cabins

    Key performance indicators such as the number of train withdrawals and service delays have been improving in recent years as a result of a change to the approach to maintenance adopted by public transport providers.

    “But while the statistics show improvement, the recent incidents are a stark reminder that we still have a significant way to go”, Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew said in Parliament on Wednesday (Mar 11).

    Mr Lui noted that for most of 2014, public transport operators have made “significant inroads in improving reliability”. For instance, the number of train withdrawals on the North-South (NSL) and East-West Lines (EWL) were halved to 1.1 per 100,000 train-km, compared to 2.2 in 2013 – back to 2007 standards.

    “I feel that we can do better in the coming years as this improved rate is still double that of the North East Line and Circle Line,” he qualified.

    Service delays lasting more than five minutes have also improved on the NSL and EWL, down to 1.3 in 2014 compared to 1.6 in 2012 – an improvement of close to 20 per cent, the minister said.

    Similarly, the withdrawal rate for the Bukit Panjang LRT had come down to 4.5 per 100,000 car-km in 2014, compared to 6.1 in 2012. For the Sengkang-Punggol LRT, it was 0.7 in 2014, compared to 1.5 in 2012, he said.

    Commuters were more satisfied with public transport last year. Survey results involving over 4,000 people showed satisfaction levels improving from 88.5 per cent in 2013, to 91.3 per cent last year.

    Satisfaction with train services hit 92.8 per cent, after a four-year decline, while for buses, it was up for a second year to reach 90.2 per cent, from 88.3 per cent in 2013.

    Mr Lui said: “It reflected the prevailing sentiments that commuters were starting to feel the effect of the improvements and investments that we have made in our buses and trains over the last few years.

    “And for the MRT, I must point out that we look at a range of attributes, from waiting time, to reliability to comfort and so on, and the attributes that had scored the highest for at least the past two years were safety and security.”

    ‘I AM MOST UPSET’

    However, a recent spate of breakdowns has shown that much work still needs to be done, said Mr Lui.

    “While I can accept the occasional breakdown or even a more severe disruption if it occurs very rarely, I am most upset with the current situation in the last few weeks,” he said.

    “The operators must persevere and redouble their efforts to do better. They need to intensify their maintenance regime, undertake additional preventive and detection measures, as well as improve their processes to enable prompt and effective response to maintenance issues,” he said, adding that his ministry will work with these companies to continue with track renewal and mid-life upgrades of their trains.

    The Land Transport Authority (LTA) will augment SMRT with additional engineering expertise where required, and will also step up audits of the latter’s maintenance procedures and resources.

    “In the event of a disruption, like in the Bukit Panjang LRT incident, LTA will require SMRT to deploy more service ambassadors to better assist commuters,” Mr Lui said. “I would like to assure Members that we will spare no effort to find out the cause of the recent spate of breakdowns, and take the necessary steps to stem the problems.”

    In January, the LTA announced a higher bar set for Singapore’s rail network to cut waiting times and disruptions. For instance, it plans to further tighten the Operating Performance Standards (OPS) for train frequencies during morning, evening and shoulder peak periods for the North-South and East-West Line, North East Line and Circle Line. This will be introduced progressively from 2016.

    By 2019, there will be 99 new trains, for the North-South and East-West Line, North East Line and Circle Line. Mr Lui said: “We are constructing these new lines at a pace unprecedented in Singapore’s history. By 2030, our rail network will be almost as dense as New York and London, and we would have achieved this in under 50 years, compared to the more than 100 years that it took the two cities.”

    “The overall train fleet will increase by about 50 per cent and we can expect that peak period wait times will come down by 25 per cent on average across all train lines,” he added.

    WHAT ABOUT WOMEN-ONLY CABINS?

    In response to suggestions by Members of Parliament Lily Neo and Low Thia Kiang to deploy women-only train cabins, Mr Lui said this idea had been raised and looked at carefully before.

    “There are practical difficulties and challenges, such as how to and how strictly to enforce the rule, and also how this could sub-optimise the capacity of our trains,” the minister said.

    “From the experience of other systems, the women-only cabins are often utilised less, meaning that more commuters will have to crowd into the other cabins or wait for the next train.”

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

  • Commuters Slam LTA And SMRT, Asks Lui Tuck Yew To Follow Suggestion Khaw Boon Wan Made To WP In Parliament

    Commuters Slam LTA And SMRT, Asks Lui Tuck Yew To Follow Suggestion Khaw Boon Wan Made To WP In Parliament

    It was reported that yesterday alone (3 Mar), SMRT was hit by two train service incidents, both during peak hours.

    In the early morning, a signalling fault at HarbourFront station on the Circle Line stopped all trains between Haw Par Villa and HarbourFront. And in the evening, track faults disrupted services on the East-West Line. Track faults at Clementi and Lakeside stations caused trains to slow down from Queenstown to Boon Lay. Commuters were advised to add 20 minutes to their travelling time between Bugis and Jurong East stations in both directions as bridging bus services were activated. Services resumed about 2 hours later.

    Many commuters were, understandably, angry with SMRT and lashed out at SMRT on social media (‘SMRT: Recent train incidents were ‘technically unrelated’‘).

    In all, there were 5 train disruptions in the spate of 9 days. LTA also joined in to condemn SMRT, saying that the situation is “unacceptable”.

    On LTA’s Facebook page yesterday, it said [Link]:

    “Today’s disruptions on the Circle and East-West Lines are the latest in a recent spate of incidents on the SMRT rail network. Commuters have been severely inconvenienced again. This is unacceptable.

    LTA has directed SMRT to investigate the various disruptions and give a full account of them. LTA is also conducting our independent investigations.

    LTA will be working with SMRT on the immediate remedial actions to turn around the situation. We expect the SMRT Board and management team to put in maximum effort and resources. We intend also to review again SMRT’s management of resources and processes for the maintenance of the rail system.”

    SMRT CEO Desmond Kuek was forced to come out to make, yet, another public apology.

    However, commuters were still not pleased. They also took the opportunity to slam LTA on its Facebook page:

    Shao Wei Chui Dear LTA, you most certainly do not keep my world moving. You keep mentioning that it’s “unacceptable” but so what? All that happens is a slap on a wrist on the transport companies and a fine but nothing changes and the fares go up to cover the fine

    Leon Chow: Don’t be a joke. If you all bother, things would not have gone out of hand. Useless jokers

    Shibly Mahmat: After investigate then what? Increase the fares again citing doing this for better service. Thats what you guys have been saying. But has the services ever improve? As far as all of us are concern, train disruptions due to faults are at an all time high now..is this your idea of better service?

    Evonne Sim: LTA, what can/will u do besides telling us this is unacceptable. How many times u want SMRT to investigate/explain! How many times we have to go thru these inconvenience over & over again! n what u going to do besides having endless meetings with no outcome? stop FINE SMRT as it will not solve any problem other than increasing their so-called operating cost n resulted fare hike. don’t juz lip service, we want to see action by the authority…

    Edmund Khor: you said you wanted to improve service.. but 4 years already, and it keeps getting worse. talk is cheap..

    Ken Ong: It’s all wayang. Lta n smrt management are pretty useless. They should all step down n resign.

    Calvin Xun Hui Wong: Another classic scene of relevant authority ‘takes action’ and ‘fine’ transport company, then on the other hand transport company takes the opportunity to raise fares with support from PTC (AKA the authority) to ‘improve transport system’. Its like LTA condemning SMRT but making the commuters pay their fines. So this is ‘action taken against SMRT’ ?

    Some even asked Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew to do what National Development Minister Khaw had suggested to WP MPs during the AHPETC saga, which Mr Khaw blamed WP:

    Rongjing Zeng: “In Japan, the chairman and CEO would call a press conference, take a deep bow and, in the good old days, they may even commit hara-kiri.” – KBW

    Gordon Teo: Why Tuck Yew haven’t hara kiri yet ah?

    Jabez Chai: What is our Transport’s Minister doing about it after so many years of breakdown and while doing nothing… He are being paid millions of dollars….

    Some questioned the rationale of approving the recent transport fare hike when the train services are “unacceptable”:

    Vasanthan Kanagasundaram: Could you also review why you think you deserve a fare hike.

    Ray Ng: Dear SMRT, the upcoming fare hike in April is not written in stone. please have the conscience to delay the fare hike in light of the recent train faults

    Robin Low: LTA, please justify why you allow price hike when there is no improvement and still lots of profits.

    Still, others think that it’s the fault of the government to increase the population of Singapore quickly by importing too many foreigners:

    Jeffrey Lim: So y import so many foreigners in the first place, if our mrt system can’t cope with it???

    Tan Cheng Siong Leslie: Nothing new. Cant imagine if population is 6.9, those top ‘elite’ mgmt dun care coz they dun take public transport, to them say a few words of apology n conduct investigation for show fat salary still goes to their pocket. TALK ONLY la.. Increase fare some more? Aiyooo, i so paiseh to say tat!

    Daniel Tan: Don’t blame SMRT, LTA. Blame the people who made the decision to overcrowd Singapore.

    Finally, one commuter said:

    “Main reason why I still hold on to my motorbike. Screw public transport. Now COE high, MRT haven’t improve, wanna encourage to take public transport. Screw that! I’ll never EVER let go of my motorbike!!”

     

    Source: www.tremeritus.com

  • Shorter Waiting Times Expected During Peak Periods Beginning Late 2015

    Shorter Waiting Times Expected During Peak Periods Beginning Late 2015

    SINGAPORE: Train commuters can expect shorter wait times, particularly during peak periods, from later this year, with new measures announced by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) on Thursday (Jan 15).

    Waiting times are expected to be reduced with the deployment of new trains from the second half of 2015 and the completion of re-signalling works on the North-South Line (NSL) and the East-West Line (EWL) in 2016 and 2018 respectively.

    Trains should also come more frequently during rush hour as LTA further tightens the Operating Performance Standards (OPS) for train frequencies during morning, evening and shoulder peak periods for the North-South and East-West Line, North-East Line and Circle Line. This will be introduced progressively from 2016.

    “Tightened Operating Performance Standards should lead to shorter wait times, increased reliability and better journeys,” said LTA’s chief executive, Mr Chew Men Leong, at a press conference.

    “New trains will be put into service from the second half of 2015 onwards, and the expanded train fleets will allow train trips to eventually increase by an estimated 8 per cent. During peak periods, peak capacity is estimated to increase by about 25 per cent for rising travel demand,” LTA said.

    Under new standards, passengers should see trains arriving faster. Commuters Channel NewsAsia spoke to welcomed the move.

    Said one commuter: “The trains can be so crowded – I have to squeeze in. In future, if the trains arrive faster, I won’t have to.”

    Another commuter hoped the measures would kick in sooner: “If you can implement it sooner, it would be better.”

    A third commuter said: “At Somerset, Orchard, there will be a lot of people waiting for trains. Dhoby Ghaut is quite crowded and City Hall as well. If the trains come faster, or have a higher frequency, then we do not have to wait as long. The platform won’t be as crowded, because, obviously, who wants to wait?”

    MORE TRAINS OUT ON THE TRACK

    LTA also intends to introduce a new fleet availability standard to ensure train operators maximise the number of trains available in their expanded fleets for passenger service during peak periods. This will include train availability standards of no less than 90 per cent for the morning peak period.

    Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew had said last November that LTA is reviewing the MRT OPS to further tighten headways requirement during peak periods and to reduce incidents of service degradation.

    TRACKING SEVERE INCIDENTS

    LTA also plans to further tighten the Frequency of Occurrence standard in relation to “severe service degradation”, which it defined as incidents persisting for more than 60 minutes. This could include times when trains are available but running at slower speeds, or longer stretches between trains for prolonged periods which might result in longer journey times for commuters.

    This standard is different from train disruptions which, LTA officials pointed out, referred to incidents when there are no trains arriving at stations for more than 30 minutes.

    “Operators will thus be held to higher service standards with the tracking of more incidents that inconvenience commuters,” it said.

    Asked how often these “severe service degradation” incidents must occur before operators are censured, LTA’s deputy chief executive, Mr Chua Chong Kheng, said at the sidelines of the briefing that “it depends on a case-by-case basis”.

    LTA said it has started consulting the operators to implement the tightened standards in stages.

    HIGHER SECURITY STANDARDS

    The agency also intends to introduce new standards to enhance the security of the MRT network, in particular the reliability of operators’ Video Surveillance Systems (VSS) for stations, trains and depots.

    Said Mr Chew: “Video surveillance systems as well as the perimeter fencing as well as lighting within the depot, all that will ensure that equipment relating to security will be at its highest operational state, ensuring that we can have good security around key depots and installations which are part of our train system.”

    This is separate from an existing Code of Practice which sets out security standards for MRT systems as of Jan 1, 2014.

    Asked what is the expected availability operators should maintain for the VSS, LTA officials said it should “be as high as can be achieved”, without elaborating.

    TIGHTENED OPS ‘CONSISTENT’ WITH SMRT’S FOCUS

    In a press release on Thursday, Mr Lee Ling Wee, managing director for SMRT Trains, said LTA’s statement on improving rails services in Singapore is “consistent” with the company’s focus on robust operational and maintenance regimes, and efforts to deliver “safe, reliable and customer-centric services to all commuters”.

    “SMRT will work towards meeting the new Operational Standards set by LTA, while efforts are underway to renew an ageing rail infrastructure and to cater to much higher passenger loads,” Mr Lee stated.

    He noted the transport operator has made “good progress” in the past year, particularly in sleeper replacement works on the NSL. These efforts will continue over the next few years with sleeper replacement works on the EWL.

    SBS TRANSIT ‘WORKING CLOSELY WITH LTA’ ON PROPOSED CHANGES

    In response to media queries, SBS Transit said it is “working closely with the LTA on the proposed changes”.

    “We always have, and will continue, to work hard at improving our level of service to commuters,” said its spokesperson.

    JOINT EFFORT BY LTA, PUBLIC TRANSPORT OPERATORS TO RESULT IN BETTER TRANSPORT SYSTEM: LUI

    In a Facebook post, the Transport Minister said he asked the LTA to review the OPS in 2013, so commuters can experience shorter waiting times for trains.

    Mr Lui added that this further tightening is planned “in anticipation of the completion of the re-sleepering and re-signalling works” and the arrival of more trains. He also noted that Public Transport Operators (PTOs) will be held to higher service standards – these include lifts and escalators in train stations.

    “I know that this joint effort by LTA and the PTOs will result in a better transport system in the coming years,” he said.

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com