Opening of TEL's 2nd stage delayed until Q3 next year

A signalling fault that disrupted train services on the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) on Dec 4 has led to a delay in the opening of the second stage of the line.

It has been pushed back by another six months till the third quarter of next year for a more thorough review of the rail system software, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) yesterday.

In addition, other major rail and road infrastructure projects are also facing delays - of up to a year - because of the coronavirus pandemic, the LTA added in a statement.

Those affected include the third and fourth stages of the TEL, Cross Island Line, Jurong Region Line, Circle Line Stage 6 and the North-South Corridor expressway network which links the northern parts of the island to the city centre.

A major cause of the delays is the suspension of work during the eight-week circuit breaker period, which ended on June 1.

Other factors cited by the LTA include disruptions to the global supply chain for construction materials and a general manpower crunch owing to border closures.

The LTA said the revised completion and opening timelines for these projects are still being finalised, and it will issue updates in due course.

Explaining the TEL delay, it said: "The recent disruption of TEL prompted LTA to review the software of the system, which contributed to the delay, more thoroughly with our contractor.

"As rail systems are complex, it is better that we try to iron out as many teething issues as possible before opening the next phase. This is a key reason why TEL is being opened in phases."

The signalling problem disrupted train services between Woodlands North and Woodlands South stations for more than five hours on the morning of Dec 4, including peak hours.

Together with Woodlands station, the two stations fall under the first stage of the TEL, which has been open since Jan 31.

TEL operator SMRT later said the fault was caused by a software glitch in the signalling system's network component, which had to be reconfigured before the system could be reset.

This latest delay is the second setback for TEL's second stage, which involves six stations from Springleaf to Caldecott. The first was a three-month delay, with the completion date pushed back from the end of this year to the first quarter of next year.

Yesterday, the LTA said construction has progressively resumed at all its work sites since June 2. "Our contractors have been adhering to strict safe management measures at work sites, including mandatory daily temperature monitoring, using SafeEntry or TraceTogether to check in and out, as well as ensuring work is carried out in groups of no more than five workers with no intermingling between groups."

Mr Saktiandi Supaat, chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport, told The Straits Times yesterday that the delay is understandable given the pandemic situation. It is important to have a thorough review of the system and software to ensure things are done properly, he said.

The Government will expand the MRT network significantly, from around 230km today to 360km by the early 2030s. This includes opening the remaining stages of the TEL, Circle Line Stage 6, the North East Line extension, Jurong Region Line and Cross Island Line.

Originally slated to be completed by 2024, the TEL - Singapore's sixth MRT line - is expected to serve about 500,000 commuters daily in its initial years.

The Circle Line Stage 6 extension was originally slated to be operational in 2025, while the first stage of the Cross Island Line was to be ready by 2029. The North-South Corridor was slated to be ready by end-2026 before Covid-19 forced the delay.