The second woman detained for allegedly murdering Kim Jong-nam, the estranged brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, was apparently a divorced woman with a young son. She also had two different identities.
Malaysian authorities have identified her as Siti Aisyah, 25, from Serang, Indonesia, based on the passport she was holding when she was arrested.
According to Indonesian news portal Kumparan, based on identification records held by her village in Angke, Jakarta West, she had two separate entries, complete with different photos.
In the first one, her name is spelt as “Siti Aisyah,” with information saying she was born in Serang, Indonesia, on Feb 11, 1992. In the accompanying picture, her hair is tied in a ponytail.
In the second entry, her name was written as “Siti Aisah” and her date of birth is listed as Nov 1, 1989. In this picture, her hair is worn loose.
Kumparan reported that the ID (identification) numbers as well as her occupation on both entries differed.
As “Siti Aisyah,” she listed her occupation as entrepreneur; as “Siti Aisah,” she listed her occupation as housewife.
Her name is spelt as “Siti Aisyah,” with information saying she was born in Serang, Indonesia, on Feb 11, 1992. Photo: The Star
Kumparan quoted Angke village head Dwi Ariyono as saying that he did not know why Siti Aisyah had two separate IDs.
Siti Aisyah was also divorced, according to Indonesian news portal Detik.com.
Her mother-in-law Lian Kiong or Akiong, 56, told Indonesian Foreign Ministry officials on Friday that she and her family had no relationship with her since she divorced her husband Gunawan Hasyim.
A sealed handwritten letter dated Feb 1, 2012 was presented to the Foreign Ministry on Friday.
Signed by Siti Aisyah and Gunawan, with Lin Kiong as witness, the letter said that the couple had opted for a divorce as they no longer “possessed the compatibility and harmony of husband and wife.”
Lian Kiong said that following the divorce, Siti Aisyah hardly visited her in-laws in Tambora in West Jakarta, and only came around once a year to meet her seven-year-old son Rio.
“After the divorce, she never came around. The last time she came was on Jan 28.
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Half-brother of N Korean leader assassinated in Malaysia
“She came and stayed for the night. She spent the night with my grandson and left the next day,” Detik.com quoted Lian Kiong as saying.
She added that Rio had previously even refused to meet his mother because he knew she would leave eventually.
Kumparan reported that Siti Aisyah’s involvement in Jong-nam’s murder began when she was approached by a mysterious man at the nightclub that she worked at in Kuala Lumpur.
The man reportedly offered her US$100 (S$142) to carry out the act, which she believed to be a prank.
She is said to have accepted the deal because “she needed the money,” despite not knowing who Jong-nam or her other accomplices were.
She previously worked as a domestic helper in Jakarta before moving to Malaysia in 2013 with her then-husband.
Siti Aisyah was arrested by Malaysian police at 2am on Thursday after she was identified based on CCTV footage from KL International Airport 2 (KLIA 2).
Jong-nam, 45, was killed by two women who splashed his face with a chemical at the KLIA2 departure hall at about 9am on Monday. He was about to leave for Macau.
“Very painful, very painful, I was sprayed liquid” – these were the last words of Kim Jong-nam just before he collapsed after being poisoned by two women at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (KLIA2).
According to China Press, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un walked about 15m to the airport service counter for help after the attack on Monday on the 4th floor near the departure hall.
Service counter staff then stopped auxiliary policemen for help to take the North Korean to the airport clinic on the third floor.
However, he had lost consciousness and the doctor at the clinic deemed the situation serious enough for him to be immediately transferred to Putrajaya Hospital.
SINGAPORE – The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) of Singapore is investigating a case of cat abuse in Toa Payoh.
The cat, named Mei Mei, was missing for about a week before her body was found in the bushes by a cat feeder, Mr Joseph Wong.
It often wandered around Toa Payoh Lorong 2, said Ms Ho Sin Huay, who wrote about the incident on Facebook.
“Her eyes had been gouged out, and the fur on the lower half of her body, including her tail, had been stripped off,” Ms Ho said on Facebook
She told The Straits Times: “It’s very apparent that it’s the work of a non-animal.”
Ms Ho, 39, said this is the first time they have come across an obvious case of abuse in their area.
Mr Wong, who was shocked by the discovery, wrapped the body up in towels and put it in the dumpster, she said.
Following two recent abuse cases, the Cat Welfare Society has put up an appeal on Facebook for people who find the bodies of abused animals to report it to AVA to help in their investigations.
“We cannot stress how important it is that abuse be reported to AVA quickly and the body of the animal be secured until it is retrieved. Otherwise, all efforts are lost in bringing justice for our cats,” the post read.
Another cat was found dead in a riser in Pasir Ris on Feb 13.
The Toa Payoh case was not reported to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), it said.
“It is very distressing and concerning to hear of any case of animal abuse. Anyone with any information on the case should step forward and contact the AVA,” said SPCA executive director, Dr Jaipal Singh Gill.
He said that the number of cat abuse cases reported to SPCA have not increased in the last three years.
“However, we are now seeing more cases being shared via social media and other platforms,” he added.
AVA is appealing to members of the public who have information on the case to contact the agency at 1800-4761600.
All information provided will be kept in strict confidence, AVA said.
This article was first published on Feb 17, 2017. Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
The list has been shared over 3,500 times on Facebook since it was posted yesterday afternoon.
Is your estate not inside? Ask in the comments box and you shall receive.
Yishun has become the butt of jokes online after everything from cat abuse to stabbing cases seemed to be happening there in short successions since 2015.
A three-firm consortium has won a $34.9 million contract to partner the authorities on both sides of the Causeway to oversee the set-up of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High-Speed Rail (HSR).
The consortium, made up of WSP Engineering, Mott MacDonald and Ernst & Young Advisory Services, beat seven other competitors.
Both Canada-based WSP and Mott MacDonald, which is headquartered in Britain, had worked on the 345km Taiwan High-Speed Rail, as well as the upcoming 1,300km California High-Speed Rail project in the United States.
The 350km Kuala Lumpur-Singapore HSR is slated to be completed by end-2026 and cut travel time between the two cities to 90 minutes.
The consortium – which will have offices in both Malaysia and Singapore – will assist the Land Transport Authority (LTA) here and MyHSR Corporation, a unit under the Malaysian Ministry of Finance.
It will help develop technical and safety standards for the project, as well as provide project management support and technical advice.
It will also help prepare the tenders relating to joint aspects of the project, such as the appointment of a company to provide and maintain assets such as trains and signalling systems.
Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan emphasised the importance of the tender to appoint the assets company.
“This will be one of the largest railway tenders in the world,” he said in a Facebook post yesterday.
The “collective expertise and extensive experience” of the consortium in other international HSR projects allows MyHSR and the LTA to kick-start the preparation of joint tenders for the project, said LTA chief executive Ngien Hoon Ping.
The appointment of the consortium comes a month after Aecom Singapore won a $24.6 million contract to conduct an advanced engineering study for the Singapore stretch of the HSR.
The two developments mark the “next chapter” in delivering the HSR project, said Mr Ngien.
azhaki@sph.com.sg
This article was first published on February 17, 2017. Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
The national women’s football team recorded their first victory of 2017 when they beat Bangladesh 3-0 in the first match of the Women’s Development Tournament on Thursday (Feb 16) held at Jalan Besar Stadium.
Raudhah Kamis scored a brace in the eighth and 47th minutes and Joey Cheng scored in the 38th minute for the hosts.
It is the first time the three-nation tournament is organised, and the Lionesses will face Malaysia on Saturday.
Singapore will be using this friendly triangular to prepare for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) women’s Asian Cup qualifiers, where they will play their first group D match against Syria on Apr 3.
Singapore lost 0-3 and drew 0-0 to the United Arab Emirates last month in two friendlies the Republic hosted.
This article was first published on Feb 16, 2017. Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
More bankrupts were discharged last year than at any time in a single year as the Insolvency Office upped its efforts to help deserving cases.
This happened before a new framework kicked in last August which, among other things, raised the minimum debt that needs to be owed before a person may be made bankrupt, from $10,000 to $15,000.
Last year, some 4,359 individuals were released from their debts, up from 3,499 in 2015.
Responding to queries from The Straits Times, the Law Ministry (MinLaw) said the record number was the result of the Insolvency Office increasing its efforts to discharge deserving cases from bankruptcy before the implementation of the Differentiated Discharge Framework.
Besides the new minimum debt level, the framework creates a more rehabilitative regime and sets out fixed exit points for bankrupts to be discharged.
If prescribed conditions are satisfied, first-time bankrupts can generally be discharged between five and seven years.
“These clear timeframes will give bankrupts an incentive to adhere to their payment plan, their conditions of bankruptcy, and seek gainful employment as a means of achieving their discharge,” said the Insolvency Office website.
Repeat bankrupts will generally be eligible for discharge within seven to nine years.
For applications made from Aug 1 last year, bankrupts are discharged either by the High Court, which has to be satisfied by the grounds presented during the hearing, or by the Official Assignee (OA).
The OA has to certify that the bankrupt has met the relevant term in bankruptcy and paid the total contributions in full, among other things.
Around 1,800 people fall into bankruptcy a year, said MinLaw.
“The OA will manage the cases to ensure a certain level of parity in the treatment of existing and new bankrupts, while balancing the interests of the creditors and the bankrupts. Cases most likely to get discharged would be those where the bankrupts have been cooperative and where all administrative matters have been concluded,” it added.
The main reasons for bankruptcies include overspending, business failure and unemployment, said MinLaw.
In addition to moves by the OA to rehabilitate bankrupts, the Community Justice Centre (CJC) set up a satellite office – launched last month – at the Supreme Court.
Volunteer lawyers are available there on Thursdays for a start, as many bankruptcy cases are heard on that day, said CJC executive director Leonard Lee.
The move comes as more people are seeking legal advice from the CJC – an independent charity – on bankruptcy issues.
There were 2,704 bankruptcy applications made by individuals last year, up from 2,587 in 2014, according to MinLaw statistics.
CJC saw 61 such cases in the second half of last year at the State Courts, under its on-site legal advice scheme.
This is an increase from the 49 cases it saw from January to June that year.
In one instance, a man’s company was sued by his creditor after his employee leased a car in his firm’s name for $61,000, said Mr Lee.
The employee, who was also his friend, signed the agreement without the company’s official stamp while the owner was away for more than two months.
The employee then went missing.
In visiting the CJC, the business owner sought advice on whether his bank loans would be affected by the bankruptcy claim and his next course of legal action. A lawyer advised him accordingly.
Lawyer Rajan Chettiar, who has been volunteering with the CJC at least once a month for three years, said the new centre is helpful as individuals filing for bankruptcy likely cannot afford a lawyer.
He said demand for such legal advice may continue to increase.
“Times are bad, and many people cannot pay off their debts,” he added.
“Filing for bankruptcy can be one of the better ways out so they don’t have to deal with creditors, but the challenge is the consequences. In a month, we receive at least five new callers at our law firm enquiring about bankruptcy and this has been consistent in recent years.”
4,359 Number of individuals who were released from their debts last year.
3,499 Number of such individuals in 2015.
vijayan@sph.com.sg
byseow@sph.com.sg
This article was first published on February 17, 2017. Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
Singaporeans cannot seem to get enough of five-a-side football, a smaller version of the beautiful game.
Three new venues housing five-a-side pitches have opened in the past seven months, adding to the more than 20 existing spaces that are scattered across the island.
The new spots are SkyPark Arena in Bukit Timah, FutsalArena @ Yishun and long-time operator Stadio Futsal’s fourth outlet at the rooftop of the Civil Service Club in Tessensohn Road.
Later this year, long-time private operator Premier Pitch plans to open its fourth outlet in the Upper Thomson area.
A five-a-side game, as its name suggests, requires only five players in a team. This is unlike the traditional version of the game that requires 11 players.
The pitch typically measures 25m by 15m, about one-third the size of an average football pitch.
The game can be played indoors or outdoors, but the pitches are usually enclosed to prevent the ball from flying out of the perimeter.
Five-a-side football is commonly confused with futsal, which also has five players in a team, but there are differences between the two.
Five-a-side pitches mostly have an astroturf or artificial grass surface that is easier on the knees for players. In contrast, futsal is officially played on a hard court.
The ball used in five-a-side is the same one used in regular football matches, whereas a smaller ball with less of a bounce is used for futsal matches.
Whatever their similarities and differences, futsal and five-a-side football are clearly a favourite activity among recreational players for the ease of organising a game compared to traditional football.
“It’s really difficult to find 11 players a team, let alone 22 to play a match,” says sailing coach Jackson Ho, 29, who plays five-a-side two to three times a week at SkyPark Arena.
He plays with different groups of football enthusiasts each time and is a regular at the rooftop facility.
For risk analyst Hong Deqi, 34, the smaller pitch size allows him to play a more eventful and less tiring game.
Besides playing 11-a-side football weekly, Mr Hong also kicks about on a five-a-side pitch once a month with his friends and colleagues at various places, including Kovan Sports Centre and Tampines Safra.
“There is less running and more opportunity to come into contact with the ball,” he says, adding that each game is shorter compared to a traditional football match.
For slightly bigger teams, there are six-, seven- and eight-a-side pitches available too.
Booking a pitch at privately operated venues starts at $70 an hour during peak periods, which are usually after 6pm on weekdays and all day on weekends.
There are also a handful of public pitches that are managed by the People’s Association and Sport Singapore. They are either free or cost from $15 an hour for Singaporeans or permanent residents.
The healthy demand for these smaller-side pitches spells good news for private pitch operators.
New entrants SkyPark Arena and FutsalArena @ Yishun have experienced a steady growth in bookings over the past six months.
Both cite location and regular pitch maintenance as crucial factors in drawing customers.
SkyPark Arena is situated on the rooftop of Sime Darby Centre that is minutes away from King Albert Park MRT station. FutsalArena @ Yishun is a short walk away from Yishun MRT station and the bus interchange. Both opened in July last year.
Mr Ian Wong, 32, director of Sky Sports Singapore, the company that runs SkyPark Arena, says he offers customers “a premium experience”.
The company invested close to $500,000 in the 2,865 sq m space and the cost includes buying goalpost nets used in the 2014 World Cup.
Next door to the two five-a-side pitches is a cosy air-conditioned room with entertainment facilities such as a foosball table and karaoke system to cater to the partners or kids of the football warriors, Mr Wong adds.
Meanwhile, existing pitch operators have been working hard to continously draw and retain customers.
When The Straits Times reached out to some of the businesses, the majority say that demand has held steady or has been rising gradually.
Asia Sports Holdings, the operator of the Home United Youth Football Academy in Mattar Road, notes that its 12 pitches are almost at full capacity during peak periods on weekdays.
A spokesman adds that the company is looking into providing shade for its outdoor pitches to boost bookings over the weekends.
Others such as Uber Sports, which has three outlets, regularly organises tournaments and family-friendly activities such as carnivals. It recently closed its pioneer space at East Coast Park due to the land’s redevelopment.
Mr Bertrand Thum, its events and marketing manager, says about 160 to 200 events were held last year.
More operators are opening up their pitches to other activities besides football too.
At The Cage in Kallang, the first company to introduce indoor pitches in 2005, more pitches are being booked in the daytime on weekdays for offbeat activities such as bubble soccer and archery tag.
The Cage’s co-director Rajesh Mulani, 47, says, “We want to host more services so people have more options. Not everyone wants to play football.”
Bookings at its other outlet at Turf Club Road has increased by 30 per cent in the past six months, he adds.
Will the popularity of five-a-side overtake 11-a-side football in Singapore though?
Ms Karen Magracia, 33, the sports operations and development executive for amateur football league organiser ESPZEN, says that is unlikely.
She says that there are more than 250 teams playing 11-a-side football actively with ESPZEN in various leagues compared to the 30 teams playing five-a-side.
“It is a bit unfair to put one in comparison with the other,” she says.
Find a soccer mate on this website
Besides two pitches, SkyPark Arena also has an entertainment room with facilities such as a foosball table and karaoke system.Photo: The Straits Times
For the past 1 ½ years, programme manager Derek Chan has been playing football with random strangers.
The 34-year-old uses Stranger Soccer, a home-grown football and futsal online booking platform that connects enthusiasts who need help finding enough people to play a game.
Matches are set up for each day at various venues and times. Users pick which option best suits their schedule and book a slot.
They can either choose to join a five-, seven- or 11-a-side game and the system ensures there will be enough players to form at least two teams for a two-hour match.
Users confirm their bookings by making payment using credit cards, PayPal or bank transfer. Rates start at $3.99 a person.
A game is given the go-ahead once there are enough players. Users will subsequently be notified.
If there are not enough players three hours before game time, the match will be cancelled and players get a full refund.
The portal was set up in late 2014 by two friends and football fanatics Andrew Gan and Owyong Jian Wei, both 29, who were frustrated by the difficulties of rallying enough people to play a game. Both have engineering backgrounds.
“As we grew older and started working, it became harder and harder to coordinate and find players. We figured this is a problem many others face too,” Mr Gan says.
The number of games organised has risen three-fold since 2015. Now, an average of 60 matches are organised a week and there are more than 6,000 registered users.
Playing with strangers has its risks. Given that people can clash over diffferent playing styles and attitudes, there have been tussles. Some users have even been suspended from the system for a few months for bad behaviour.
Two features on the portal help to encourage friendly behaviour. The first is a rating system for users, similar to those in ride-hailing apps Uber and Grab.
The second feature is a host programme, introduced half a year ago. At every game, a designated host ensures it runs smoothly, that is, “all players have equal playing time and a solid two hours of friendly soccer fun”, Mr Gan says. The hosts sign on for the job and they get paid $30 a game.
For users such as Mr Chan, strangers have now turned into friends whom he regularly plays with.
He says: “We all just want to play football and have a good time at the end of the day.”
Rates: From $65 (member) and $90 (non-member) an hour from 9am to 7pm (non-peak), $95 (member) and $110 (non-member) an hour from 7 to 10pm (peak) on weekdays. $46 for half an hour from 10 to 10.30pm. From $25 an hour, $50 for two hours and $60 for three hours for students (a minimum of five student passes need to be produced) on weekdays from 9am to 7pm.
What: Two outdoor five-a-side pitches and two outdoor seven-a-side pitches
Where: Orto, 01-13, 81 Lorong Chencharu (the former Bottle Tree Park)
Open: 9 to 2am daily. Bookings must be made for slots after 2am
Rates: From $50 an hour on weekdays from 9am to 6pm (non-peak), $95 an hour on weekdays from 6pm to 2am and all day on weekends and public holidays (peak).
Open: 7am to 11pm daily and till 1am for two of the pitches
Rates: From $42.80 (Safra member) or $64.20 (non-member) an hour from 7am to 5pm on weekdays (non-peak), $107 (Safra member) or $160.50 (non-member) an hour from 7am to 5pm on weekends and public holidays (peak)
Info: www.safra.sg. Members can also book the outdoor pitch at Safra Jurong or the multipurpose court at Safra Yishun
WEST
Golazo Futsal
What: Four indoor five-a-side pitches
Where: 2 Jurong West Street 25 (it is moving to 21 Jurong West Street 23 in April with two indoor and two outdoor five-a-side pitches)
Open: 9 to 3am daily
Rates: $50 an hour from 9am to 6pm on weekdays, $90 an hour from 6pm to 3am on weekdays and all day on weekends.
What: Two seven-a-side, eight five-a-side and two 11-a-side pitches
Where: 8 Mattar Road
Open: 7am to 11pm daily for five- and seven-a-side pitches
Rates: $50 an hour for a five-a-side pitch from 7am to 6pm on weekdays, $86 an hour from 7pm to 11pm on weekdays and all day on weekends. $70 an hour for a seven-a-side pitch from 7am to 6pm on weekdays, $120 an hour from 7pm to 11pm on weekdays and all day on weekends..
Open: 24 hours. Make an advance booking for late timings
Rates: $60 an hour before 6pm on weekdays, $90 an hour on weekdays after 6pm and all day on weekends and public holidays.
Info: offside.com.sg
SkyPark Arena
What: Two five-a-side pitches that can be converted into one six-a-side pitch
Where: 05-03 Sime Darby Centre, 896 Dunearn Road
Open: 8am to 11pm daily
Rates: From $60 an hour from 8am to 6pm, $80 for an hour from 6 to 11pm on weekdays, 8 to 11am and 4 to 6pm on weekends, $49 an hour from 11am to 4pm and 6 to 11pm on weekends. Students and NSFs pay $30 an hour on weekdays from 8am to 6pm
What: Two outdoor five-a-side pitches and one outdoor six-a-side pitch.
Where: Singapore Indian Association, 69 Balestier Road Open: 8 to 1am daily
Rates: From $70 an hour from 8am to 5pm from Mondays to Thursdays, $90 an hour after 5pm from Mondays to Thursdays and all day on Fridays, weekends and public holidays
Rates: From $70 an hour from 8am to 5pm from Mondays to Thursdays, $90 an hour after 5pm from Mondays to Thursdays and all day on Fridays, weekends and public holidays
Where: Rooftop, Amara Hotel Singapore, 165 Tanjong Pagar Road
Open: 8 to 1am daily
Rates: $120 an hour from 8am to 5pm from Mondays to Thursdays, $140 an hour after 5pm from Mondays to Thursdays and all day on Friday, weekends and public holidays
Where: Rooftop, Civil Service Club in Tessensohn Road, 60 Tessensohn Road
Open: 8 to 1am daily
Rates: $100 an hour from 8am to 5pm from Mondays to Thursdays, $120 an hour after 5pm from Mondays to Thursdays and all day on Fridays, weekends and public holidays Info: stadio.com.sg
Open: 24 hours, booking is required at least 12 hours in advance
Rates: $54 an hour before 6pm on weekdays, from $72 an hour after 6pm on weekdays and all day on weekends and public holidays. $54 for two hours for students from 8am to 7pm on weekdays.
What: Three indoor five-a-side pitches that can be converted into one seven-a-side pitch. Three 11-a-side pitches
Where: 220 Turf Club Road
Open: 8am to 11pm daily
Rates: From $35 an hour before 6pm on weekdays, $50 an hour after 6pm on weekdays and all day on weekends and public holidays. $50 for two hours for students from 8am to 7pm on weekdays.
The public can make bookings to use the three hard courts at the Singapore Sports Hub (www.sportshub.com.sg) as well as the hard courts at the various community clubs (CC) islandwide. Sengkang CC and Pasir Ris Elias CC also have dedicated futsal courts. More details on www.pa.gov.sg. Besides the astroturf courts at Pasir Ris and St Wilfrid Sport Centres, Sport Singapore also has hard and astroturf courts available for booking at Choa Chu Kang Sports Centre, Crest Secondary School and MOE (Evans Road). Go to www.myactivesg.com for more information.
This article was first published on Feb 17, 2017. Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
Commuters affected by a spate of delays resulting from faulty track circuits on the East-West MRT Line may have to wait for at least a year before the glitches are resolved.
Half a dozen track circuit-related delays, on the Clementi-Joo Koon stretch of the line, have occurred in the past 11/2 months alone.
The most serious delays were on Jan 23, Jan 19 and Jan 4, when train services were disrupted for four hours, 21/2 hours and one hour, respectively.
The most recent incident was on Sunday.
SMRT said most of the incidents – which took place during peak hours – were traced to faulty track circuits, which help to keep trains at a safe distance from each other.
But the rail operator could not say why it has not been able to resolve the repeated glitches nor cite a cause other than the age of the line, which is close to 30 years old.
The Straits Times understands that there were times when technicians sent to fix a circuit fault would get a “no fault” reading on their diagnostic equipment.
SMRT suggested in its reply that the glitches – reminiscent of the signalling faults which bedevilled the Circle Line in August, September and November last year – would go away once the signalling system is upgraded next year.
“There are more than a thousand track circuits on the NSEWL (North- South and East-West Lines)… As a safety precaution, trains within the faulty track circuit would be required to be driven manually and at a slower speed. This, in turn, could cause trains behind to slow down,” said a spokesman.
This causes congestion, especially during peak hours, when trains are travelling closer to one another.
“We are working on replacing all track circuits as part of a resignalling project. In addition, the new signalling system, being more advanced than the current system which was installed 30 years ago, will be more reliable as it is built with multiple redundancies.”
SMRT had also said the disruptions were not related to the recently installed sleepers.
The four-year project to upgrade sleepers on the North-South and East-West lines, from older timber sleepers to hardier concrete ones, was completed last month.
It was supposed to bring smoother and safer rides.
Stockbroker Cole Cheong, 50, who takes the train from Boon Lay to Raffles Place, said the recent frequent delays have been frustrating.
“They only put up a sign saying trains between this station and that station will be delayed for 20 minutes. But, in reality, the delay is 45 minutes,” he said.
“It is very confusing because no one tells us what is the real problem.”
National University of Singapore transport researcher Lee Der- Horng said “train operations are usually more complicated at the end of a line and, because of that, the number of circuits will be higher” in such a location.
Even so, he said he does not know why other extremities of lines have not experienced such a high incidence of track circuit faults.
“I am not sure if it has to do with the Tuas West extension works,” he added, referring to a 7.5km extension that was supposed to open last year, but has since been delayed to the second quarter of this year.
Singapore Institute of Technology assistant professor (engineering cluster) Andrew Ng said: “While upgrading the signalling system, condition-based maintenance strategy can be implemented. Both hardware equipment in the signal equipment room and trackside equipment can be regularly inspected, repaired or replaced to reduce the risk of track circuit failures.”
christan@sph.com.sg
This article was first published on February 17, 2017. Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
