Singapore rail industry standards launched to get all stakeholders on same page

President of the Institution of Engineers Richard Kwok and Minster of Transport Ong Ye Kung unveiling The Singapore Railway Standards Book. ST PHOTO: MOHD KHALID BABA
A commemorative book titled "The Learning Journey of the Singapore Railway Standards" was launched. ST PHOTO: MOHD KHALID BABA

SINGAPORE - The rail industry here is seeking to reduce chances of miscommunication and get all stakeholders on the same page, with engineers, SBS Transit and SMRT coming together to hammer out Singapore's first railway standards.

The first three areas were launched on Tuesday (March 23) by Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung at the Shangri-la hotel, part of a planned fuller set of expectations and fixed terminology.

The three areas cover terminology and abbreviations for the permanent way, or the rails that trains run on; how these rails are maintained; and the terms of references related to managing rail assets.

The standards are being worked on by 17 working groups under a technical committee on railway systems set up last year.

Comprising academics, engineers and representatives from both SBS Transit and SMRT, it is an industry initiative in which the Land Transport Authority has played a relatively small role, and which Mr Ong said was all the more valuable for it.

He noted in an off-the-cuff speech he gave at the event that the standards should be pitched at a level where operations are not made too inflexible.

Dr Richard Kwok, president of the Institution of Engineers, Singapore and co-chair of the technical committee, said the rail industry will benefit in three ways from standardisation.

It will be more consistent and interoperable, those working in the industry will be more competent with what is expected of them firmly laid out, and a culture of continuous improvement will be encouraged.

"Ultimately, these standards will act as benchmarks for the regional and international rail industry, enabling Singapore to strengthen its leadership position in the global rail transport sector," he said.

To mark the occasion, a commemorative book titled The Learning Journey Of The Singapore Railway Standards was launched by the Institution of Engineers, Singapore's Standards Development Organisation and SMRT.

"We hope that today's progress will pave the way for standards development in other sectors of land transportation," Dr Kwok added.

The four main areas the standards will eventually cover are asset management, maintenance, safety and security, and service.

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