Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) has taken delivery of the first of 13 new light rail vehicles for the Bukit Panjang LRT System (BPLRT).
The new vehicles, which will be operated by SMRT, will be gradually introduced onto the network over the next few months to relieve congestion on the system during the morning and evening peaks.
SMRT will bring the new trains into service from the final quarter of this year following a period of testing at Bukit Panjang depot.
Currently the system is served by 19 train cars in single-car and two-car configurations. Once commissioned, the 13 new vehicles will increase peak capacity by 50 per cent, LTA has said.
The additional train cars will allow the operator to tun more two-car services and reduced headways between the Choa Chu Kang and Bukit Panjang LRT stations are expected to cut journey times on the network.
LTA is delivering a series of other projects between now and 2016 designed to improve services on the light rail system. LTA is constructing two new additional platforms at Choa Chu Kang LRT station to reduce crowding. Currently, commuters board and alight from the trains at a single platform, which can become congested during peak hours.
Works to enable both single-car and two-car train operations on the Sengkang-Punggol LRT systems are also now underway.
