Rail operator SMRT was yesterday told by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to check all service maintenance doors, after a fault in one of them led to a 30-minute halt in train services between Queenstown and Bugis MRT stations yesterday morning.
Train services in both directions on the East-West Line had to be stopped from 11.30am to allow SMRT technicians to dismantle the unhinged service door near Tiong Bahru station.
The sliding door separating the east-and west-bound tunnels along the line had somehow become dislodged from its roller rail.
Whenever a train passed, the resulting air turbulence caused the faulty door to flap, allowing its bottom to come into contact with the power-supplying third rail. This caused intermittent power trips, The Straits Times understands.
“We decided to remove the door as it was faster than repairing it,” an LTA spokesman said. “This allowed train services to resume as quickly as possible.”
The power trips started at about 6am. Each time, SMRT had to reset the system, and this caused delays and crowding on station platforms across the North-South and East-West lines. This was further aggravated later by a track circuit fault on the East-West Line.
Related story: No service between Queenstown and Bugis MRT stations for 30 mins
Related story: Delays plague North-South and East-West Lines on Tuesday morning
