MRT woes so unlike Singapore

What’s happening to my beloved Singapore?

I was shocked by the news that hundreds of commuters were trapped underground with no light or ventilation for more than an hour before they heard from the train operator SMRT on Thursday when there was a breakdown on the north-south line.

I had always feared what might happen if something wrong at the Orchard MRT station, in the heart of the shopping district, and at interchanges where people change trains. Dhoby Ghaut, City Hall and Raffles Place seemed particularly vulnerable because they are so crowded.

But what I feared were terrorist attacks. Never did I expect services to break down like this in super-efficient Singapore.

I remember when the trains were less crowded. Taking the train used to be a pleasure for an occasional passenger like me.

Now everybody complains about the crowded trains and service disruptions are also reported more often. Maybe you could call it growing pains. The MRT carries more people and covers a larger area now.

The government is on the right track in expanding the railway network. The new Circle Line has made it possible for people in the central district to go to the airport faster than before when there were only the north-south, east-west and north-east lines.

But, with more people taking trains, there is greater unhappiness when services break down. Reuters says:

Singapore’s multiple train breakdowns have become a political hot potato for Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who must now take steps to assure an angry public that there is accountability in government and that authorities can cope with emergencies.

I do hope PM Lee can placate the people. All said and done, Singapore is a good place to be in, attracting people from all over the world, and some of the credit surely goes to the government.

This is what struck me as I went through the Reuters report:

SMRT CEO Saw Phaik Hwa , who has been credited with trebling SMRT’s net profit to S$161.1 million over the past eight years, had already been under fire for overcrowded trains and frequent breakdowns in the subway system…
Eugene Tan, an assistant professor of law at Singapore Management University, said part of the problem was due to SMRT staff not being given the authority to make decisions on the spot.”Standard operating procedures did not work and SMRT staff seemed disempowered, awaiting instructions from higher up, to deal with the fluid situation,” Tan said.

It’s unfortunate that the trains have become overcrowded and prone to breakdowns while profits have trebled.

Could the railway staff have coped better with the emergency if they had the authority to make decisions on the spot?

We can only speculate on that, but clearly the MRT system failed badly. It has to do much better if the government wants the MRT trains to be the main mode of public transport.