Hahaha, I think its better if Mediacorpse produced a Channel 8 drama inspired by these breakdowns, almost a guarantee the viewer ratings will be astronomical. Henry Thia could act as penang cow.
Singapore’s ‘not very reliable’ MRT train system fails to keep cars off the road
‘The government has been trying to make the city car-lite but you have a train system that’s not very reliable’
In the battle against the car, space-starved Singapore has deployed road tolls, massive spending on public transport, and a licence fee that bumps the cost of an average vehicle to over US$80,000.
But urban planners looking for solutions to gridlock may find the draconian measures hard to replicate in other less-compliant cities.
Singapore has gone further than any other major city to avoid the monster jams that have blighted Asian metropolises such as Jakarta or Manila.
The tough approach has been possible as Singaporeans are used to strict control – with media closely monitored and harsh punishments for minor crimes – and are fearful the city state will be flooded with vehicles without the curbs.
However the model faces mounting criticism thanks to rush-hour jams that have frustrated commuters, surging vehicle prices after a freeze on car numbers, and public transport breakdowns.
“I think the system can be made better and fairer,” Joel Lee, a 28-year-old technician, said.
He said authorities should make “a distinction between those who need cars, be it for work or family commitments, and those who just want more cars as a status symbol”.
Authorities’ main tool is the certificate of entitlement, or COE. Every potential car buyer must bid for a certificate and the cost is added to the vehicle price.
The current cost of a COE for an average family car is almost S$50,000, pushing the price of a Toyota Corolla to S$114,000 (US$83,000).
But COEs fluctuate depending on demand and at their high point four years ago the same car was S$159,000 (US$127,000 at the exchange rate at the time) – six times the price in the US.
The certificates are valid for 10 years, after which the car must be scrapped or the certificate renewed.
Despite the high price, many in the financial centre, home to hordes of wealthy expats and millionaires, have bought cars, with some 600,000 on the streets – a considerable number for a limited road network.
Other key measures include controlling the number of vehicles on the road and charging tolls on main roads at busy times.
But the decision sparked anger and was followed by a jump in the price of COEs by several thousand dollars, in what The Straits Times newspaper described as “panic buying”.
To mitigate its tough policies, Singapore has built a modern public transport network with a subway, overland trains and buses, and the government recently announced a plan to spend S$28 billion to upgrade the system.
Ride-hailing apps Grab and Uber have helped those unable or unwilling to spend on a car, and the government plans to build 700 kilometres of cycle paths.
But Singapore’s metro operator SMRT has recently been hit by repeated delays and breakdowns during rush hour. In the most serious incident for years a tunnel on the network flooded last month, crippling a main line for 20 hours, and sparking widespread anger.
Some are now questioning the government’s plan to make Singapore a country where most people walk, cycle or take public transport.
“The government has been trying to make the city ‘car-lite’ but you have a train system that’s not very reliable,” Jason Lin, a 66-year-old retiree, said.
“If you take a bus, because there are so many cars, it’ll take a long time. It can be very frustrating.”
Speaking in parliament this month, Lam Pin Min, a senior minister of state for transport, insisted there significant growth in the transport network was planned and there would be “less need to own a car”.
Singapore has not heavily promoted electric cars as it pushes public transport – unlike Hong Kong – but an electric-car sharing scheme starting next month is a first step to changing that.
Other places echo Singapore’s approach – London has a congestion charge while Paris sometimes orders some private cars off the road due to air pollution – but they are unlikely to copy the city state’s tougher measures as it would be too risky.
“COE is not a very popular measure, and any government that tries to implement this kind of a measure in any other country may lose elections,” Vivek Vaidya, a transport expert at business consultancy Frost and Sullivan, said.
Looks like the train captain was the "casualty", really unlucky to the max. Hope dude recovers soon. We will all probably need to purchase insurance when we ride on trains in the future, or we might just end up as fried chicken.
FUCKED UP RING LEADER OF MONKEYS IN WHITE FINALLY SPEAKS.
People frustrated by incidents on public transport system: PM Lee
It will take time to improve the train system, and there will be more hurdles to clear along the way, said PM Lee.
SINGAPORE: There are lessons to be learned from the recent problems on the MRT network and the causes need to be established so that things can be put right.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said this on Sunday (Nov 19) at the People's Action Party's convention, which was held at Big Box in Jurong.
"We have made progress, but there have been setbacks," said Mr Lee, pointing to the train collision last week at Joo Koon station which left 36 people injured, and October's flooding in a tunnel from Bishan to Braddell MRT stations which resulted in the suspension of services for about 20 hours.
People are frustrated and worried by such incidents and "understandably so", said Mr Lee.
He said that improving train reliability is a very complicated problem, but the organisations need to be strengthened to deliver consistent high performance.
Mr Lee said that Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan and his team in the Ministry of Transport and Land Transport Authority "are extremely disappointed with the recent incidents", which is a sentiment shared by the train operators and their workers on the ground.
And while efforts to improve the train network are showing results, it does not feel like that to the public, said Mr Lee. A key reason for that is that major incidents hurt public confidence a lot.
In his speech, Mr Lee said that Mr Khaw has one of the toughest jobs in Cabinet: "I want Boon Wan and his team to know that they have our full support and confidence," he said, to applause from the PAP members.
It will take time to improve the train system, and there will be more hurdles to clear along the way. "The best thing we can do now is to give our transport team the time and space to fix the problems."
However, Mr Lee noted that he already considered Singapore's transport system a "first-class" one, even if it could be "even better".
He quoted an article naming the four top cities in terms of train system reliability: "Hong Kong, Taipei, Los Angeles, Singapore".
"We're not the best - Hong Kong is better, Taipei is better," said Mr Lee.
"We will get better. But we must see our problems in perspective and we must therefore encourage our team: 'Work at it. Get there. We are with you'."
Mediacock is seriously pushing things a little too far with this........
This masterpiece by Mediacock really had me in stitches.........
Yeah, could name it "Train To Bishan".
Hahaha, I think its better if Mediacorpse produced a Channel 8 drama inspired by these breakdowns, almost a guarantee the viewer ratings will be astronomical. Henry Thia could act as penang cow.
Any genius out there who might already have created a manga based on SMRT's misfortunes? Do share ya?
@ Run 森林 RUN!!!!! :
YOU FORGOT TO APPEND SAMPLES OF THE "CASH" NEEDED TO PLAY THE MONOPOLY GAME.
Singapore’s ‘not very reliable’ MRT train system fails to keep cars off the road
‘The government has been trying to make the city car-lite but you have a train system that’s not very reliable’
In the battle against the car, space-starved Singapore has deployed road tolls, massive spending on public transport, and a licence fee that bumps the cost of an average vehicle to over US$80,000.
But urban planners looking for solutions to gridlock may find the draconian measures hard to replicate in other less-compliant cities.
Singapore has gone further than any other major city to avoid the monster jams that have blighted Asian metropolises such as Jakarta or Manila.
The tough approach has been possible as Singaporeans are used to strict control – with media closely monitored and harsh punishments for minor crimes – and are fearful the city state will be flooded with vehicles without the curbs.
However the model faces mounting criticism thanks to rush-hour jams that have frustrated commuters, surging vehicle prices after a freeze on car numbers, and public transport breakdowns.
“I think the system can be made better and fairer,” Joel Lee, a 28-year-old technician, said.
He said authorities should make “a distinction between those who need cars, be it for work or family commitments, and those who just want more cars as a status symbol”.
Authorities’ main tool is the certificate of entitlement, or COE. Every potential car buyer must bid for a certificate and the cost is added to the vehicle price.
The current cost of a COE for an average family car is almost S$50,000, pushing the price of a Toyota Corolla to S$114,000 (US$83,000).
But COEs fluctuate depending on demand and at their high point four years ago the same car was S$159,000 (US$127,000 at the exchange rate at the time) – six times the price in the US.
The certificates are valid for 10 years, after which the car must be scrapped or the certificate renewed.
Despite the high price, many in the financial centre, home to hordes of wealthy expats and millionaires, have bought cars, with some 600,000 on the streets – a considerable number for a limited road network.
Other key measures include controlling the number of vehicles on the road and charging tolls on main roads at busy times.
Authorities last month decided to freeze the number of private cars on the road from February for at least two years, citing land scarcity.
But the decision sparked anger and was followed by a jump in the price of COEs by several thousand dollars, in what The Straits Times newspaper described as “panic buying”.
To mitigate its tough policies, Singapore has built a modern public transport network with a subway, overland trains and buses, and the government recently announced a plan to spend S$28 billion to upgrade the system.
Ride-hailing apps Grab and Uber have helped those unable or unwilling to spend on a car, and the government plans to build 700 kilometres of cycle paths.
But Singapore’s metro operator SMRT has recently been hit by repeated delays and breakdowns during rush hour. In the most serious incident for years a tunnel on the network flooded last month, crippling a main line for 20 hours, and sparking widespread anger.
Some are now questioning the government’s plan to make Singapore a country where most people walk, cycle or take public transport.
“The government has been trying to make the city ‘car-lite’ but you have a train system that’s not very reliable,” Jason Lin, a 66-year-old retiree, said.
“If you take a bus, because there are so many cars, it’ll take a long time. It can be very frustrating.”
Speaking in parliament this month, Lam Pin Min, a senior minister of state for transport, insisted there significant growth in the transport network was planned and there would be “less need to own a car”.
Singapore has not heavily promoted electric cars as it pushes public transport – unlike Hong Kong – but an electric-car sharing scheme starting next month is a first step to changing that.
Other places echo Singapore’s approach – London has a congestion charge while Paris sometimes orders some private cars off the road due to air pollution – but they are unlikely to copy the city state’s tougher measures as it would be too risky.
“COE is not a very popular measure, and any government that tries to implement this kind of a measure in any other country may lose elections,” Vivek Vaidya, a transport expert at business consultancy Frost and Sullivan, said.
http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/2120665/singapores-bright-ideas-keep-cars-roads-hampered-smrt
Looks like the train captain was the "casualty", really unlucky to the max. Hope dude recovers soon. We will all probably need to purchase insurance when we ride on trains in the future, or we might just end up as fried chicken.
Even Thor is pissed off with Monkeys In White......LIGHTNING STRIKE!!!!!!
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/smrt-investigating-possible-lightning-strike-on-train-9422970
Why isn't "suffer heart problem get $8 bypass surgery" being featured on the board?
LMFAO where can I buy this?
Monopoly SMRT breakdown version!
Darn nice looking wheel hee hee
FUCKED UP RING LEADER OF MONKEYS IN WHITE FINALLY SPEAKS.
People frustrated by incidents on public transport system: PM Lee
It will take time to improve the train system, and there will be more hurdles to clear along the way, said PM Lee.
SINGAPORE: There are lessons to be learned from the recent problems on the MRT network and the causes need to be established so that things can be put right.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said this on Sunday (Nov 19) at the People's Action Party's convention, which was held at Big Box in Jurong.
"We have made progress, but there have been setbacks," said Mr Lee, pointing to the train collision last week at Joo Koon station which left 36 people injured, and October's flooding in a tunnel from Bishan to Braddell MRT stations which resulted in the suspension of services for about 20 hours.
People are frustrated and worried by such incidents and "understandably so", said Mr Lee.
He said that improving train reliability is a very complicated problem, but the organisations need to be strengthened to deliver consistent high performance.
Mr Lee said that Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan and his team in the Ministry of Transport and Land Transport Authority "are extremely disappointed with the recent incidents", which is a sentiment shared by the train operators and their workers on the ground.
And while efforts to improve the train network are showing results, it does not feel like that to the public, said Mr Lee. A key reason for that is that major incidents hurt public confidence a lot.
In his speech, Mr Lee said that Mr Khaw has one of the toughest jobs in Cabinet: "I want Boon Wan and his team to know that they have our full support and confidence," he said, to applause from the PAP members.
It will take time to improve the train system, and there will be more hurdles to clear along the way. "The best thing we can do now is to give our transport team the time and space to fix the problems."
However, Mr Lee noted that he already considered Singapore's transport system a "first-class" one, even if it could be "even better".
He quoted an article naming the four top cities in terms of train system reliability: "Hong Kong, Taipei, Los Angeles, Singapore".
"We're not the best - Hong Kong is better, Taipei is better," said Mr Lee.
"We will get better. But we must see our problems in perspective and we must therefore encourage our team: 'Work at it. Get there. We are with you'."
What about flooding in tunnel? Train windows cracking? Ponding in trains?