Number of major LRT breakdowns spiked in 2015, reveals LTA

Blame it on the Bukit Panjang line.

New statistics released by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) show that the number of major rail disruptions has increased dramatically for Singapore's LRT system, mainly due to breakdowns at the Bukit Panjang LRT line.

The LRT system recorded 11 disruptions longer than 30 minutes in the first three quarters of 2015, as opposed to just four such breakdowns for the whole of 2014.

The number of disruptions at the Bukit Panjang LRT line jumped to 8 in just the first nine months of the year, compared to just 2 cases in 2014.

The figures were released in tandem with the LTA's announcement that it has adopted a new method of tracking service disruptions across Singapore’s rail system.

Under the new method, delays caused by external factors—those beyond the control of the operators and LTA, such as passenger action—will be excluded.

The revised method shows that major disruptions have actually declined this year, despite the headline-grabbing July 7 breakdown on the North-South and East-West Lines (NSEWL).
There have been seven major MRT breakdowns in the first three quarters of 2015, as opposed to ten such breakdowns for the whole of 2014.

LTA said that the methodology has been refined to better measure the progress in improving rail reliability and to facilitate international benchmarking.

The Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway and the New York City Transit use a similar methodology, the LTA added.