The Sengkang-Punggol LRT service resumed on 15 August after a major disruption in the morning left thousands of commuters stranded for hours — the second such breakdown on the line within the same week.
The fault occurred at about 8:55am, bringing trains to a complete halt at Punggol LRT station. Some passengers were forced to walk along the tracks, while SBS Transit activated free regular and bridging bus services to move affected commuters.
According to SBS Transit’s updates, services on the Sengkang LRT resumed fully at 12:54pm. In a public apology, the operator acknowledged the inconvenience caused and explained the technical cause behind the extended downtime.
Power Fault and Missing Back-Up System
SBS Transit Group CEO Jeffrey Sim revealed that a cable fault between two stations had tripped the LRT network, affecting all 29 stations along the line. The situation was worsened by the absence of a functioning back-up switch board — a critical component that had been damaged during the previous disruption on 12 August.
“With only the main and single switch board operational, the fault led to a full service shutdown and a longer-than-usual recovery process,” Sim explained. As a result, 10 trains stalled on the tracks, requiring all passengers to be safely evacuated before repairs could begin.
Growing Concerns Over Reliability
The repeated breakdowns in such a short span have raised concerns among commuters about the reliability of the Sengkang-Punggol LRT system, which serves densely populated residential areas. Public transport users have taken to social media to share their frustrations, with some calling for urgent reviews and upgrades to prevent future occurrences.
While services have now been restored, the incident highlights the vulnerability of the system when key redundancy components are unavailable. Commuters are watching closely to see if SBS Transit and the Land Transport Authority will announce long-term measures to improve operational resilience.