EWL service still aimed to resume on 1 Oct, all damaged train segments replaced

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EWL service still aimed to resume on 1 Oct, all damaged train segments replaced

Train service on the East-West Line (EWL) is still set to resume tomorrow (1 Oct) as planned, SMRT said in a response to a Facebook user’s question in its update on Monday (30 Sept).

All affected rail segments between Clementi and Ulu Pandan Depot have been replaced, and the third rail, which supplies power to trains, has been reinstated.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT Corporation have jointly announced this and more updates via Facebook on Monday morning.

Rail undergoing endurance run

According to LTA, their staff worked overnight to restore service on the train line.

In addition to replacing and reinstating the rails, the teams completed the locomotive stress test, which ensures that all affected rails are sturdy and properly welded before the loaded train endurance test.

They also conducted an electrical meggering test to ensure that the third rail and running rail were electrically insulated, enabling them to safely turn on the traction power supply.

Source: Land Transport Authority on Facebook

At that point, load testing using locomotives was finished, but the team said they were still to do an endurance run with the train loaded with sandbags, which they planned to do on the same day.

Service previously set to resume on 30 Sept

On Wednesday (25 Sept), service on the EWL was disrupted due to a power fault near Clementi station.

Source: SMRT on Facebook

SMRT initially aimed to restore full service on the stretch between Jurong East and Buona Vista MRT stations by 30 Sept.

The replacement of all damaged rails was completed by the evening of 28 Sept.

However, 12 new cracks appeared on unreplaced rail segments following endurance tests on 29 Sept, leading the resumption of operations to be pushed back to 1 Oct.

Also read: EWL train service restoration now 1 Oct, 12 new cracks appeared during stress testing