SINGAPORE: Train service on the eastern sector of the East-West Line (EWL) will be affected on all weekends in January as maintenance and renewal works on the rail line continue, SMRT said on Friday (Dec 15).

This includes two more full-day closures of 10 stations on Jan 21 and Jan 28, both Sundays. The affected stations are the stretch between Paya Lebar and Pasir Ris MRT stations, as well as Expo and Changi Airport stations.



There will be early closures on Fridays and Saturdays at 11pm and late openings at 8am on Saturdays and Sundays.

Two shuttle bus services - one between Aljunied and Pasir Ris, and another between Expo and Changi Airport - will be available. They will serve the bus stops closest to the affected MRT stations.



TRAINS AT LONGER INTERVALS ON NSL



Trains will also come at longer intervals on the North-South Line late at night and early in the morning on weekends, the public transport operator said.

This is because MRT train services between Orchard and Marina South Pier stations will be operating on a single track on late Friday and Saturday nights, and early Saturday and Sunday mornings.

Train services will therefore operate at longer intervals of between 10 to 15 minutes before 7am and after 11pm on certain days:

At these times, there will also be no service between City Hall and Raffles Place MRT stations on the NSL.

Commuters travelling between these two stations will need to use the EWL, or use other MRT lines or bus services, SMRT said.

"Night bus services and some regular bus services along the affected stretch will be enhanced during this time," it added.

Detailed information on the exact train service timings and alternative transport arrangements will be made available soon, SMRT said.

"Information on the affected train service operational hours for February 2018 will be announced in January," it added.



This comes after full-day closures and shorter weekend service hours were first implemented in December.

MORE ENGINEERING HOURS

The shorter service hours are to provide more engineering hours for more rail maintenance and renewal works, and for more checks on the new signalling system to be carried out.

Mr Lee Ling Wee, SMRT Trains CEO said: "The longer engineering hours are needed for the testing of the new CBTC (Communications-Based Train Control) signalling system.

"We aim to introduce it for passenger service along the East-West Line in the middle of 2018, keeping the initial teething phase to as short a period as possible."

Other rail maintenance and renewal works are also being accelerated, he added.

"We would like to thank commuters for their patience and support, especially those who rely on North-South and East-West Lines daily. All hands are on deck to ensure that the inconvenience is kept to a minimum during this time,” he said.

