According to SMRT on Friday (Nov 17), train service on the newly-built Tuas West Extension between Joo Koon station and Gul Circle will be suspended for a month. Commuters living and working in the western end will have to make do with bridging bus services, which delays their actual trip by more than half an hour to replace the 7.5km long train line.
Photo from SMRT
The S$3.5 billion Tuas West extension was opened by Second Transport Minister Ng Chee Meng only four months ago in June 2017, but the system was not fully tested. A train collision happened on Wednesday (Nov 15) injuring 36 commuters, with many severely injured, at Joo Koon station.
SMRT and LTA did not explain why the train system that has not been commissioned and tested was allowed to operate live, endangering human lives.
Incompetency plagues both the Transport Ministry and SMRT, with former army generals and military cronies who have no experience handling railway network taking leadership roles. To worsen the matter, there are two Transport Ministers and two CEOs for SMRT – each drawing more than S$1.7 million-a-year.