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Class of electric multiple units in Singapore From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Kawasaki Heavy Industries & CSR Qingdao Sifang C151A is the fourth generation electric multiple unit rolling stock in operation on the existing North–South (NSL) and East–West (EWL) lines of Singapore's Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, manufactured by Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) and CRRC Qingdao Sifang under Contract 151A. Their introduction to the network has increased the capacity of both lines by 15%.[4][5][6]
Kawasaki Heavy Industries & CRRC Qingdao Sifang (KSF) C151A
| |
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In service | 27 May 2011 – present |
Manufacturer | |
Built at | Qingdao, Shandong, China |
Constructed |
|
Entered service | 27 May 2011 |
Number built | 210 Vehicles (35 Sets) |
Number in service | 210 Vehicles (35 Sets) |
Formation | 6 per trainset DT–M1–M2+M2–M1–DT |
Fleet numbers |
|
Capacity | 296 seated; 1,624 standing; 2 PIW spaces |
Operators | SMRT Trains (SMRT Corporation) |
Depots | |
Lines served | |
Specifications | |
Car body construction | Aluminium-alloy double-skinned construction |
Train length | 138.86 m (455 ft 6+7⁄8 in) |
Car length |
|
Width | 3.2 m (10 ft 6 in) |
Height | 3.7 m (12 ft 2 in) |
Doors | 1,450 mm (57+1⁄8 in), 8 per car, 4 per side |
Maximum speed |
|
Weight |
|
Traction system | Fuji Electric IGBT–VVVF (output 415 kVA) |
Traction motors | 16 × Fuji Electric MLR109 140 kW (188 hp) self-ventilated 3-phase AC induction motor 550V 193A 1760 r/min |
Power output | 2.24 MW (3,004 hp) |
Transmission | Westinghouse-Natal (WN) Drive |
Acceleration | 1 m/s2 (2.2 mph/s) |
Deceleration |
|
Auxiliaries | Fuji Electric auxiliary inverter with battery charger 80 kVA + 16 kW |
Electric system(s) | 750 V DC third rail |
Current collector(s) | Collector shoe |
UIC classification | 2′2′+Bo′Bo′+Bo′Bo′+Bo′Bo′+Bo′Bo′+2′2′ |
Bogies | bolsterless air-spring monolink axlebox type |
Braking system(s) | Regenerative, rheostatic and electro-pneumatic |
Safety system(s) | Original: Westinghouse Brake and Signal Company FS2000 ATP fixed block ATC under ATO GoA 2 (STO), with subsystems of ATP and ATS[1] Current: Thales SelTrac® moving block CBTC ATC under ATO GoA 3 (DTO), with subsystems of ATP, NetTrac ATS and CBI[2][3] |
Coupling system | Scharfenberg |
Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
They are the last batch of rolling stock on the two lines to be painted in the "Blackbird" livery. Developed from the Kawasaki Heavy Industries & Nippon Sharyo C751B trainsets, further developments of the type include the C151B and C151C trains featuring design updates and changes. The C151A was the first rolling stock on the MRT network to be manufactured in China. The initial contract of 22 trainsets of 6 cars each was awarded to KHI and Sifang by the Land Transport Authority.
In 2013, a further order of 13 trainsets was placed, with all 35 trainsets in revenue service as of 2014.[7] In 2016, an investigative news report from Hong Kong's FactWire alleged that C151A trainsets were discreetly being shipped back to Qingdao for rectification due to multiple defects, including an exploding battery and cracks on trains. The Singapore government subsequently acknowledged the trains were returned for rectification works, and have since published official statements to address FactWire's specific allegations.
On 6 May 2009, the Land Transport Authority announced that KHI and Sifang had won over Hyundai Rotem, Bombardier Transportation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to secure the contract at a cost of S$369 million, despite Hyundai Rotem offering the lowest bid at S$323 million for the order of 22 trainsets under Batch 1. Sifang handled the manufacturing and testing of the rolling stock, while KHI oversaw the project and design. The C151A contract was the first successful joint venture between these two companies in the international market.[8]
With the delivery of C151A trainsets, trains were actually operated on the East–West Line until October 2013. C151As were temporarily suspended from the North–South Line during the MRT disruption in 2011, starting from 7 May 2012 all the way until 23 October 2013.[9] SMRT engineers detected arcing problems on one of the C151As, but no evidence was shown that it was the root cause of the service suspension in 2015.
During the suspension of the C151A running on the North–South Line, SMRT had investigated and found impurities in aluminium bodywork caused the cracks found in structural components, including the sub-floor, which is a compartment located under passenger floor. Its role is to hold equipment box and electrical wires and bolster function parts connecting the car body to the bogie. Affected trainsets were sent back to China progressively between July 2014 and January 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The tender for trains under the contract turnkey 151A was closed in January 2009. The tender results were published in May 2009.[10]
S/N | Name of tenderer | Amount ($S) |
---|---|---|
1 | Bombardier (Singapore) Pte Ltd and Bombardier Transportation GmbH Consortium | 373,327,788.00 |
2 | Kawasaki Heavy Industries,/ Kawasaki Heavy Industries (Singapore) /CSR Qingdao Sifang Locomotive and Rolling Stock | 368,997,888.00 |
3 | Mitsubishi Corporation | 393,301,698.52 |
4 | Hyundai Rotem | 322,729,548.00 |
The C151A trains are the third commuter type Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) made in Japan to feature electric systems fully manufactured by Fuji Electric. Propulsion is controlled by VVVF Inverter with 2-level IGBT semiconductor controller, rated at 415 kV. Each inverter unit controls two motors on one bogie (1C2M), and one motor car features two of such units. Motors are three-phrase AC induction type, model MLR109, with a maximum output of 140 kW (190 hp). However, the main difference is that the traction for the trains is higher pitched than the ones from C751B trains which are lower pitched.
The C151A trains use the monolink axlebox type bolsterless air spring bogie. There are no major technical differences between a trailer and motor car bogie other than additional electrical components for the latter; similar to the C751B trains.
A break from tradition, the C151A trains features auxiliary inverters for its electrical systems on all six cars of the train. Previously, auxiliary inverters were mounted only on motor cars. The VVVF Inverter is controlled by IGBT semiconductors and rated at 80 kV. A battery charger is built with the inverter and provides 16 kW (21 hp) output.
The interior of the C151A trains depending on each car, features the shades red, blue and green seats. Priority seats in darker shades. The floor of the train has also been grey floor and cream interior walls similar to that of C751B trains.
The coupling configuration of a C151A in revenue service is DT–M1–M2+M2–M1–DT.
Car Type | Driver Cab | Motor | Collector Shoe | Car Length | Wheelchair Bay | |
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m | ft in | |||||
DT | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | 23.83 | 78 ft 2.2 in | ✗ |
M1 | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | 22.8 | 74 ft 9.6 in | ✗ |
M2 | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | 22.8 | 74 ft 9.6 in | ✓ |
The car numbers of the trains range from x501 to x570, where x depends on the carriage type. Individual cars are assigned a 4 digit serial number. A complete six-car trainset consists of an identical twin set of one driving trailer (DT) and two motor (M) cars permanently coupled together. For example, set 535/536 consists of carriages 3535, 1535, 2535, 2536, 1536 and 3536.
On 5 July 2016, a Hong Kong-based non-profit news organization FactWire had broken the news of the C151A trains suffering from multiple defects[11] relating to Chinese-made materials and posted the entire investigative works in YouTube.[12]
These are the list of allegations mentioned in their YouTube video since C151A entered into revenue service in 2011 (27 May 2011).[12]
This list compiles the initial response from the authorities are compiled from the first SMRT press release on 5 July 2016, 4:30pm (GMT+8) by SMRT Trains managing director Lee Ling Wee [13] as well as the first Land Transport Authority press release at an hour after first SMRT's press release.[14] and also the subsequent official position on Singapore government's online FAQ portal 'Factually' which quotes sources from the Facebook page of Land Transport Authority hours after the initial press release.[15]
No. | Date of issue First appeared | Alleged issues & consequences | Alleged actions taken by the authorities | Initial response from SMRT[13] or Land Transport Authority[14] | Subsequent response by Singapore Government portal 'Factually' [15] | Additional Notes (Including any subsequent press release from the authorities) |
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1 | 2011 | A C151A battery used for uninterruptible power supply exploded during a repair work but caused no injuries or deaths. | All Chinese made batteries were replaced into German made instead. | No comments | Issue was caused by gases building up in the battery housing cover, causing the cover to fly open. The design for battery housing was since improved to rectify this issue immediately on all affected trains. | The authorities eventually admitted some flaws in the battery housing design, but did not confirm whether the suppliers for the batteries were changed as well as if the batteries installed on other C151A trains were replaced or not. |
2 | 15 & 17 December 2011 | SMRT suspects that C151A trains are responsible for the twin MRT breakdowns on North–South Line during the evening peak hours. | Worst disruptions in entire Singapore MRT history. Furthermore, according to a CSR Sifang anonymous subcontractor, he claimed to FactWire that SMRT had reduced the deployment of C151A trains and requested payment delay for the extra C151A trains after the breakdowns. As a result, the cash-flow of the subcontractor is heavily impacted. |
No comments | Not mentioned | |
3 | 2013 | Impurities in aluminium bodywork caused the cracks found in structural components, including:
|
FactWire alleged the shipment of defective trains is part of a cover-up by both Singapore (SMRT, Land Transport Authority) and the train manufacturers (Kawasaki Heavy Industries & CRRC Qingdao Sifang) as the defective trains are wrapped in a green cover and transported during late night.
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Opinions from Railway Experts and Analysts:
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This incident was a source of public concern among Hong Kongers because subway operator MTR had ordered fleets of a new train from the same manufacturer CSR Sifang. The news was quickly reported in other Hong Kong media.[18] The incident also created a public uproar in Singapore, generating a public reaction. Some of these discussions included criticism of the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT for the cover-up about the defective trains, while others questioned the quality of the Chinese-made trains.[19] The LTA released more technical details on 6 July 2016 claiming that 5 of the 26 defective trains had been rectified, including photos illustrating the 'hair-line crack'.[20][21] The authority also named an independent third-party assessor, TUV Rheinland who shared the same opinion that the defects are "not safety-critical".[20][21]
During the same period, a rumour posted on 4 February 2015 alleging misconduct of CSR Sifang faking technical data involving almost 70 people from multiple departments since November 2010 for failing to meet the standards set by Kawasaki Heavy Industries[22] gained traction amongst the public.[23] The consortium refuted the rumor on 7 July 2016 and threatened to take legal actions.[24] The LTA also publicly dismissed the allegations in a press statement.[25] The link to the original rumor was deleted soon after the response from the authorities.[22] On 7 July 2016, the LTA also stated that "no brackets were added at any time to the underframe"[26] in order to refute a subsequent FactWire report claim.[27] LTA also stated that it "considered that the contractor was able to quickly identify the cause of the defects, take responsibility and carry out the necessary action promptly to rectify the fault" and gave the consortium the "highest quality score" as the basis for awarded them subsequent train contracts (C151C and T251) in 2015 despite the defects were discovered since.[26] The contract for C151B trains had been awarded to the same consortium in 2012, prior to the knowledge about the faults being known.[13][14]
On 9 July 2016, a Singapore-based alternative media[28] republished a CaiXin Online article originally published in March 2016 by the China Railway Construction Corporation blaming the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation for the decline of quality standards.[29] According to the former, 60% of all railway incidents in China and 90% of all railway disruptions during 2015 can be attributed to CRRC manufactured trains not meeting quality or maintenance standards, with 210 instances resulting in death or injuries.[29] The equivalent of the English article is also provided by CaiXin Online as well.[30]
The incident became a political issue as opposition politician Gerald Giam from the Workers' Party questioned the transport authority for awarding the consortium a "top quality score", among other statements in his Facebook page.[26][31] The party later issued a second statement that their MPs would file 17 questions in Parliament about the issue.[32]
On 12 July 2016, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan released an extensive statement about this issue. These are the key points that Khaw have made:[33]
On 15 November 2017 at approximately 8.18am, 2 C151A trains collided at Joo Koon MRT station. 29 passengers were conveyed to various hospitals following the incident and a further 7 walked in themselves. This is the second of such incidents after 5 August 1993, with the first being when 2 C151 trains collided at Clementi.[38][39][40]
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