North East Line
From SgWiki
| North East MRT Line 东北地铁线 வடக்கு கிழக்கு எம்ஆர்டி | |
 | |
| Overview | |
| Type | Rapid transit |
|---|---|
| System | Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore) |
| Status | Operational |
| Termini | HarbourFront Punggol |
| Stations | 16 |
| Services | 1 |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 20 June 2003 (except Woodleigh and Buangkok) 15 January 2006 (Buangkok) |
| Owner | Land Transport Authority |
| Operator(s) | SBS Transit |
| Rolling stock | C751A |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 20 km (12.4 mi) |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) Standard gauge |
| Electrification | Overhead catenary |
The North East MRT Line (NEL) is the third Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line in Singapore and the world's longest fully-underground, automated and driverless rapid transit line. The line is 20 km long with 16 stations and operated by SBS Transit. Travelling from one end of this line to the other end takes around half an hour. This line is coloured purple in the rail map.
Contents |
Overview
As the name implies, the line connects central Singapore to the north-eastern part of the island. Transfer to the North South MRT Line is provided at Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station and East West MRT Line at Outram Park MRT Station. This line is the first in Singapore to be entirely underground.
The North East Line is the first line in Singapore to have artwork integrated into all its 16 stations under the Art in Transit programme. Other than the Art in Transit programme, the interior architecture for the stations are typical of the design of the early 2000s with lots of white, glass and steel.This kind of design can be seen in other subway stations built during this period like the Shenzhen Metro and Hong Kong MTR's Tseung Kwan O line.
Presently, trains operate at two-minute frequencies during peak hours, five-minute frequencies during mid-day service and six-minute frequencies in the early morning and night times.
History
The Land Transport Authority received approval for the construction of the North East Line on January 16, 1996. French company Alstom was chosen as the main contractor and manager of the project. The operating license was given to new rail operator SBS Transit in order to foster competition with SMRT Corporation.
In the initial stages of planning, Outram Park MRT Station was initially planned to be the southern terminus of the North East Line. However, in 1993, the Land Transport Authority decided to extend the line southwards to HarbourFront MRT Station, after noting that many people liked to go to the World Trade Centre (the present day HarbourFront Centre).
The line was scheduled for completion in 2002, but due to various problems in the automation, the opening was repeatedly delayed. It was finally opened on June 20, 2003, with higher fares than existing lines supposedly to compensate for the heavy construction costs (S$4.6 billion).
At the time that the line was opened, all of the stations were operating except Buangkok MRT Station and Woodleigh MRT Station. SBS Transit announced that these would open only when there was a critical mass of passengers in those areas. With respect to Buangkok, which had already been fully built, the company claimed that the projected number of passengers was too low to cover operating costs. Constant public pressure, notably the Buangkok MRT Station First White Elephant Incident incident and subsequent media attention, forced it to review the situation and the station duly opened on January 15, 2006. As expected, Buangkok station's first-week ridership was the lowest on the NEL and does not cover operating costs. SBS Transit has since indicated that Woodleigh station will open when the Stamford American International School opens in August 2011.
The North-East Line's numbering scheme reserves station code "NE2" between HarbourFront MRT Station(NE1) and Outram Park MRT Station(NE3). As of 2009, the LTA has not announced any details of any future station here.
Stations
| Alpha-Numeric Code | Abbreviation | Station Name | Working Name | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | Chinese | Tamil | ||||
| North East Line | ||||||
| NE1 | HBF | HarbourFront | 港湾 | துறைமுகம் | World Trade Centre | Terminus (6), Future Interchange station with CCL, Future Terminus 9 |
| NE2 | (Future Station at Keppel) | |||||
| NE3 / EW16 | OTP | Outram Park | 欧南园 | ஊட்ரம் பார்க் | Outram Park | Interchange station with EWL |
| NE4 / DT19 | CNT | Chinatown | 牛车水 | சைனாடவுன் | People's Park | Future Interchange station with DTL |
| NE5 | CQY | Clarke Quay | 克拉码头 | கிளார்க் கீ | Clarke Quay | |
| NE6 / NS24 / CC1 | DBG | Dhoby Ghaut | 多美歌 | டோபி காட் | Dhoby Ghaut | Interchange station with NSL,CCL |
| NE7 / DT12 | LTI | Little India | 小印度 | லிட்டில் இந்தியா | Kadang Kerbau | Future Interchange station with DTL |
| NE8 | FRP | Farrer Park | 花拉公园 | ஃபேரர் பார்க் | Farrer Park | |
| NE9 | BNK | Boon Keng | 文庆 | பூன் கெங் | Boon Keng | |
| NE10 | PTP | Potong Pasir | 波东巴西 | போத்தோங் பாசிர் | Sennett | |
| NE11 | WLH | Woodleigh | 兀里 | Woodleigh | Station opens at a later date | |
| NE12 / CC13 | SER/SRG | Serangoon | 实龙岗 | சிராங்கூன் | Serangoon | Interchange station with CCL |
| NE13 | KVN | Kovan | 高文 | கோவன் | Kovan | |
| NE14 | HGN | Hougang | 后港 | ஹவ்காங் | Hougang | |
| NE15 | BGK | Buangkok | 万国 | புவாங்கோக் | Buangkok | |
| NE16 / STC | SKG | Sengkang | 盛港 | செங்காங் | Sengkang | Interchange station with SKLRT |
| NE17 / PTC | PGL | Punggol | 榜鹅 | பொங்கோல் | Punggol | Terminus (7), Interchange station with PGLRT |
Rolling stock
The rolling stock consists of Alstom Metropolis C751A, running in six-car formation. These trains operate from Sengkang Depot near Buangkok Station on the North East Line. The Sengkang Depot has maintenance and train overhaul facilities for trains along the North East Line.
Issues
Despite some initial glitches when the driverless line first opened, it has operated more or less reliably, as compared to the Bukit Panjang LRT run by competitor SMRT Corporation, which was fraught with repeated hiccups.
A software flaw on one of the first days of operation paralysed the trains for several hours. Another problem of trains stalling at stations repeatedly was traced to commuters accidentally pressing the Emergency Communication Button whenever they leaned on the train wall and rectified by placing plastic shields over the buttons.
The North East Line has also been criticised for charging higher fares than the rest of the system. Despite that, it had been operating at a loss until late 2006. After half a year of operation, ridership remained below expectations at an average of 170,000 passengers per day, short of the 250,000 per day needed to break even. At that time, SBS Transit estimated its losses for 2003 at S$40 million and was even rumored to be considering selling the line to competitor SMRT Corporation, although both operators dismissed such speculation. However, the ridership has been slowly increasing and broke the break-even mark of 250,000 in late 2006. The North East Line operations has been turning in profits since.
Disruptions
On 24 July 2006, passengers on board a NEL train headed for HarbourFront MRT Station were evacuated after it stalled in the tunnel due to a loss of traction power around 12:45 p.m. The breakdown occurred when the Overhead lines in the tunnel were dislodged and disconnected after a faulty insulator supporting them gave way. Electricity was cut off from the train. It was reported that commuters in the tunnel saw Ember and heard a loud bang before the train halted. Passengers had to walk a distance of about 200m back to Outram Park MRT Station as a result. 100,000 commuters were affected by the disruption for seven hours that day, with shuttle buses plying the affected sections of the line. An investigation was carried out during the period of ten months after the incident. The Land Transport Authority announced that operator SBS Transit will not be fined or penalised for the disruption, adding the fault was due to a faulty part and not negligence. Investigations pointed to the quality of the ceramic insulators made by Ceralep Sn. The LTA said Ceralep had examined all 251 insulators in stock and are free of defects. The LTA said the dislodged wires did not pose a danger to the passengers on the train, since a circuit breaker would have been tripped by the incident. In September 2006, another electrical fault disrupted train services for an hour. SBS Transit said the breakdown was due to a faulty electrical relay, a type of switch. The defective relay led to a replacement of about 200 relays made by Relais Electroniques Deutsch, a French corporation
Category Links
| Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Lines and stations | Current | North South Line • East West Line • Changi Airport Extension • North East Line • Circle Line |
| Under Construction | Circle Line • Marina Bay Extension • Downtown Line • Thomson Line • Eastern Region Line | |
| Future | Thomson Line • Eastern Region Line | |
| Defunct | Branch Line | |
| Rolling stock | Kawasaki Heavy Industries C151 • Siemens C651 • Kawasaki Heavy Industries & Nippon Sharyo C751B • Alstom Metropolis C751A • Alstom Metropolis C830 • Kawasaki Heavy Industries C151A • Bombardier MOVIA C951 | |
| Depots | Bishan • Changi • Gali Batu • Kim Chuan • Sengkang • Ulu Pandan | |
