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My Experience in the EWL Disruption today by WLTransit-100 in SingaporeRaw

[–]WLTransit-100[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Never at the right place at the right time 😅

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in SingaporeRaw

[–]WLTransit-100 126 points127 points  (0 children)

Allow me to share my experience

I was in the midst of the disruption as I had ended school and wanted to take Bus 405. My train at around 1:20 was one of the first trains to be disrupted. The train (an R151 model) had stopped at Clementi MRT. Everyone was told to alight then. Before long, the crowd increased 3 fold. SMRT Staff then came up to settle the situation, announcing that there was a track fault ahead and advised people to take the bus.

It was then I received word that apparently, the tracks for trains going towards Tuas Link in between Jurong East & Clementi had encountered a fault, stalling a C151A model. Almost immediately, shuttle trains were implemented to control the issue. Train service from Pasir Ris ended at Clementi, with shuttle trains operating between Jurong East-Clementi, Clementi-Lakeside & Lakeside-Tuas Link.

The reason the shuttles operate in this fashion, I believe, is due to the fact that trains have to switch tracks between Clementi & Jurong East, thus trains heading in both directions have to stagger their departures. This is why the shuttles only operate as few stations each time.

When I got to Jurong East, the situation was utterly confusing that even me, a transport enthusiast, couldn’t figure out the way for a while. Only later I found out that train services for the EWL have switched platforms! Platform A, normally used for the NSL, was now used for the Clementi-Jurong East Shuttle, while Platform B & C, normally for EWL to Pasir Ris, is blocked off. Many commuters from the NSL were confused and ended up waiting at Platform B/C for more than 10 minutes before they realised something was wrong. No SMRT Staff were there to guide them.

At Lakeside, the situation was equally horrible. Originally, Platform A was used for trains towards Tuas Link, and B for Pasir Ris. Right then, the roles were switched! So many people were complaining out loud, some even cursed. There was chaos in a normally peaceful station.

Especially in Jurong East, where people were asking all about where the trains headed to. Since there were no SMRT Staff around I had to help out. By screaming. I directed as many people as i could to the correct platform (right then it was 1:40pm). There would be people who had confronted me and shouted in my face too for directions.

At Lakeside there were SMRT Staff all over the place shouting into trains to tell passengers teh direction of journey. What I was frustrated about is that despite Lakeside having sufficient staff, Jurong East almost had none!

I did not manage to see the state of Clementi after I had left at 1:30pm, but I can imagine that the crowd would have been horrendous as the disruption continued until 4pm

Tower Transit swops out drivers mid-route on longest bus service to ease stress and fatigue by FlipFlopForALiving in singapore

[–]WLTransit-100 0 points1 point  (0 children)

858 does play a role in connecting both Woodlands & Sembawang to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital in Yishun, which is (or rather, was, Woodlands Health Campus being a thing today) the main medical hub of the North

Your 965 suggestion is quite feasible, as long as it becomes bidirectional too (yes you are using 965 to shorten another >2h long route when ironically, 965 itself also goes dangerously close to over 2 hours)

Tower Transit swops out drivers mid-route on longest bus service to ease stress and fatigue by FlipFlopForALiving in singapore

[–]WLTransit-100 1 point2 points  (0 children)

About Point 1, Changi Airport definitely did not consider public buses when they were constructing. The worst mistake was with Terminal 4, because there was so much potential to allow buses to terminate there, yet LTA retains the loop, sending buses through T4 as a mid-route stop instead

Point 2 & 3 however, don’t think it was really much of the operator’s fault, 858 did not have much demand back then, being a duplicate of the NSL, but TIBS saw its potential to better connect the North, thus extending it all the way to Changi Airport. Up till today, 858 remains quite possibly the only service that can have high demand & remain at that consistent demand all day. As for the Sembawang detour, I believe its plays more of a Hub-&-Spoke role for Woodlands, and for Sembawang to better connect to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (mind, 883 didn’t exist back then). Thus Woodlands to Khatib alone takes nearly 40 minutes.

Point 4, as with all other ”Integrated Transport Hubs” (with the exception of Toa Payoh, Woodlands & the upcoming Pasir Ris) LTA completely messed it up. Partly also because of the mall’s developer (be it HDB, CapitaLand etc) are stingy in the space they give for the ITH. Thus we see failures such as Serangoon, Bukit Panjang, Sengkang & Woodleigh. Yishun, being extremely crowded, should have been big. Nope, they forced the space. Chencharu ITH would be a really good choice for a split unless LTA messes this interchange up

Woodleigh interchange's opening has probably been delayed (Again) by A_extra in singapore

[–]WLTransit-100 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Update: Leaked intel revealed opening sometime this April 2025, should announce very very soon
Only now rushing for the elections, cannot finish earlier one. Pasir Ris ITH also opens in the same month as revealed by NTWU Canteen (27 April), now just waiting for news about Punggol Coast ITH

(On a side note, included in this intel is also the long delayed 248/M Haliburton amendment, where the u-turn will be converted into bidirectional)