Preparing MRT Stations for Larger Passenger Capacity

Dr Janil Puthucheary asked the Minister for Transport (a) whether future MRT lines will have the potential to serve longer trains; (b) to what extent will future-proofing be incorporated into the designs of new MRT lines and stations; and (c) whether such an approach can be taken with existing MRT stations to improve carrying capacity.

In planning the capacity of future MRT lines and stations, various factors are considered, in particular travel patterns resulting from population projections, the geographical distribution of residences and employment, and the utilisation rate of public transport. Buffer capacity is then provided, through procuring more trains than is required in the initial years, and preparing plans in advance to buy more trains to scale up capacity according to demand. For the future lines which LTA is currently planning, we will also be studying the feasibility of building the lines and the stations to be able to accommodate longer trains than what may be needed in the initial years, to provide additional buffer capacity. However, at the same time, we have to balance this wish for buffer capacity against trade-offs like higher costs and the opportunity cost of greater land-take.

For existing lines, it is difficult and very complex to expand MRT stations to accommodate longer trains. Amongst others, we will likely need to acquire additional land around the stations. Even if this were possible, modifying the stations would require significant engineering works and likely involve shutting down existing station operations for extended durations.

For existing high traffic stations, LTA will instead implement enhancement works where we can to improve the circulation and distribution of passengers, such as providing more entry and exit points and more platform space.