Expect a 10-minute halt along the North South Line after 11PM tomorrow as SMRT tests new signalling system

If you’re travelling along the MRT’s North-South Line at 11pm and beyond from tomorrow (March 28), be prepared for the trains to halt for ten minutes as the Operations Control Centre, as well as every station master and train captain along the NS Line, switch their network to the new signalling system.

This is part of the upgrade of the ageing railway network by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT, and it’s meant to replace the currently implemented Fixed Block System with the new Communications-Based Train Control System. What the new system does is allow trains to move closer to one another, and it’s said to potentially shave off approximately 20 seconds of waiting time, as well as improve peak hour capacity by 20 percent. So… yay to shorter waiting times?

In a press statement by SMRT, extensive testing of this new system has been conducted alongside LTA since last August during engineering hours. While the NS Line is ready for testing during operational hours, the testing for the East-West Line is still in the works.

Here’s hoping that the new system equates to zero train breakdowns in the future, yeah?