Singapore OK... or Not? Episode 6: Unreliable Service on the Circle Line

I wanted to write this to the forums, but there wasn't time for me to do so last time. So I completed it and will post it here.

Unreliable Service on the Circle Line

I had an unpleasant experience travelling on the Circle Line from Stadium Station at 8.15pm in the direction of Marymount on 13 August 2010. According to a robotic voice, the train was 'delayed' as there was a 'train fault'. The train was travelling at an incredibly slow pace, such that you can count the number of supporting structures that went around the circular tunnel on both sides simultaneously. More than once, the train actually stopped. The longest was almost ten minutes. The train fault appeared to "resolved" after Mountbatten as the train picked up speed after that. From Stadium to Mountbatten, which is the station immediately after Stadium, the train took an appalling 18 minutes!

Compared to the East-West line and North-South line, which took an average of 2 and 3 minutes respectively before calling at the next station, 18 minutes is tantamount to the time taken from Kallang to Queenstown on the East West line or Dhoby Ghaut to Yio Chu Kang on the North South line. I find it ludicrous that I could use the time to "fly" from one side of Singapore to the other!

Trains are seen as a speedy method to travel around the island as it goes inter-towns and not intra-towns like buses. With more train routes being added, Circle Line could serve as a check for reliable service, which we do pay increasing fares every other year. Until one day, when public transport excel in all areas will car ownership decrease.