106 train sets are finally retiring after over 25 years of loyal service on the North-South and East-West MRT Lines.
From top left, clockwise: Kawasaki C151, Kawasaki C151 (refurbished), Siemens C651 and Nippon Sharyo C751B
On October 4, 2024, the last Siemens C651 and Kawasaki Heavy Industries & Nippon Sharyo C751B train sets were withdrawn to Tuas West Depot as non-service trains.
The remaining Kawasaki Heavy Industries C151 train sets are slated to follow the same path, until the first three generations of trains to ever run on the tracks of Singapore’s MRT are officially phased out.
If you are a Rafflesian who uses the red line to commute to and from school every day, you would definitely have boarded one of these trains at least once.
Please allow none other than the trains themselves to introduce you to the pioneers of our rail network, and hopefully spread the joy of trainspotting in the process!
The OG: Kawasaki Heavy Industries C151
(img1) Hi there! This is a picture of me from 2006. Source: Wikipedia
Hey Raffles, I’m the KHI C151! I am the first MRT train model to run on the rails of Singapore.
As of 2024, I am 37 years old. However, I was nicely refurbished between 2006 and 2008, when my white-and-red livery received a makeover, transforming me into the current black-and-red iconic design. That means that I was there when the MRT system made its debut in 1987, and I was the first train model to ever stop at Bishan station!
(img2) This is how I look after refurbishment! Source: SGTrains
I usually run at my top speed of 80km/h. As 6-carriage trains, the other C151 train sets and I have gone through the toughest of times, especially when we were crush-loaded to our maximum capacity of 1920 passengers during breakdowns or peak hours. With that many passengers relying on me along the NSL and EWL, it can surely get stressful.
The C151s always worry for each other, praying every day that all of us would be able to handle such intensive, high-frequency usage on a metro system where we are held to relentlessly high standards that only get higher. Yet, maybe it’s our age showing, but our worst fear came true a few weeks ago.
(img3) Train 065/066 derailed. Well, that looks painful. Source: Wikimedia Commons
Yes, westies relate deeply. On September 25, 2024, one of my counterparts derailed on the way back to Ulu Pandan depot. His name was 065/066, and he was one of the six trains retrofitted with Toshiba PMSM motors mid-life.
The track damage was so extensive; the workers needed 6 days to restore train services between Queenstown and Boon Lay back to normal. We still mourn for 065/066 to this day – may he be remembered for his service on the tracks.
(img4) The disastrous EWL disruption on 25 September. Source: CNA
My fleet is breaking down too often for comfort nowadays. Maybe we’re no longer fit for such intensive service.
That one time I stalled at Tiong Bahru MRT station along the EWL, I was wracked with guilt, and it follows me till this day. Sure, it wasn’t peak hour, but I still did cause an hour-long disruption to the most heavily-used line in the country.
The media kept blaming us for the past few breakdowns, and I think people hate us now too. I mean, I can understand why. I was never as well-liked as my successor, the SIE C651, despite being the first-generation train. Now, we keep breaking down too, and they keep blaming our age.
Now, as my friends are being sent to the Toyotron scrapyard at a terrifying pace, my only hope is for all of you who use the NSL to find me, say hi and enjoy the last rides my counterparts and I can offer before we retire for good by 2026.
Bye, Raffles. It’s been a good run with you all, and with the beautiful Singapore.
Everyone’s Favourite: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft C651
(img5) I’ve looked the same throughout my entire lifespan. Source: SGTrains
Hi, guys. At this moment, I’m talking to you from Tuas West Depot.
I’m the Siemens C651, the second-generation rolling stock on the NSEWL. I started service in 1995 on both lines, and this year marks my 29th birthday, and also the day I bid farewell.
As I rest in Tuas West Depot, I can’t help but reminisce about the glorious days of my service on the compass lines of our MRT system.
(img7) The MRT route map in the late 1980s, when only the compass lines existed. Source: Wikipedia
I was significantly rarer than my predecessor, the C151, with only 19 trainsets compared to their fleet of 66.
I was always a favourite among train enthusiasts. They often complimented my unique motor sound, saying that it was of a pleasant pitch. As for the other users of the NSEWL, they always knew me as the “old train” or the “white train”, as my white livery had never changed.
In fact, I was never refurbished. There was a refurbishment scheme planned for me, where three of my buddies (217/218, 225/226 and 227/228) were pulled out of service and fitted with a gorgeous exterior design similar to the KSF C151B and a new LCD digital route map display (DRMD). Yet, the scheme was never completed, and my ostentatiously refurbished buddies were all sent to their tragic end.
(img6) One carriage of my refurbished counterpart. Source: Reddit
I hope their service is remembered.
Shortly after my predecessor, the KHI C151 065/066 broke down terribly on the EWL, 2 other sets of my model, I and 2 sets of my successor, the KNS C751B, were brought to Tuas West Depot and labelled as non-service trains.
I still miss those days on the tracks of the NSL and EWL. It was my greatest honour to transport over a thousand passengers at a time all around the island.
I feel rather disappointed that I was pulled out of service before my predecessor. I had always been very efficient with my unique propulsion system.
Furthermore, I was never given a proper farewell from SMRT, the LTA or the public. I hear that there are train enthusiasts out there fighting to get me a proper farewell, and I appreciate that.
Yet, I know that our lives as trains would never get too glamorous. Our public transportation network, despite the LTA’s promotion, was never seen as a truly efficient and desirable mode for everyone’s daily commutes. It was always private transport that shone in the limelight of convenience and speed, despite its consequent environmental harm.
It’s been a good run, everyone. I just hope I get to carry passengers one more time before I retire. Goodbye, Raffles.
The Intended Airport Express: Kawasaki Heavy Industries & Nippon Sharyo C751B
(img8) Look at my new livery and new lights! Source: SGTrains
Hey, Raffles. I’m the KNS C751B, the third-generation rolling stock for the NSEWL. I was introduced in 2000 with an intended 30-year design life, when there was a plan to specialise 5 sets of my model to be used for the Changi Airport Branch Line (CGL) of the EWL by creating luggage storage spaces in the carriage for tourists to store their luggage comfortably.
As of now, 24-year-old me and one other set of my model are resting in Tuas West Depot, while 19 remaining sets have already been scrapped. I was the first train model to use the Fuji Electric IGBT-VVVF traction system in Singapore, which is still one of the rarest traction systems in trains all over the world.
I was briefly refurbished in 2014-2016, where a new signalling system was equipped on every one of my sets. Thus, you can see why I was so confused when all of us were sent to the scrapyard before our time.
Funny story – I used to have little LCD screens above the windows and seats that displayed advertisements and comedy snips from local comedian Phua Chu Kang. They have since been switched off, though – maybe no one bothered to watch the videos played on them.
(img11) One of my LCD displays of the Visual Passenger Information System. Source: SGTrains
I set so many firsts for Singapore’s MRT system. On top of the traction system, I pioneered the SMRT black-and-red livery, was the first to use LED train run numbers, and so on.
However, I’m going to be honest – when I look at the train that replaces my two predecessors and me, my undeniable tinge of jealousy is paired with a feeling of comfort that all the users of our compass MRT lines, particularly those of you who use the NSL to get to school, will be enjoying smoother rides.
The KHI C151, SIE C651 and I all share one common successor which was introduced in 2023 to replace us, the Alstom Movia R151. I can’t lie, it looks pretty gorgeous if you ask me.
(img9) The 7th-generation rolling stock on the NSEWL is the Alstom Movia R151. Source: Land Transport Guru
The R151 is decked out with the newest LCD route map display, automated track inspection lasers, bright white LED lights, perch seats, a strong air-conditioning system and large one-piece windows between the doors which offer a panoramic view. Even then, it still quietly glides along the track with remarkable smoothness and grace.
Yet, even as its enormous fleet of 106 trains takes the NSEWL by storm, I still hope that you, my dear reader, will not forget the C151, C651 and me.
There is one thing that the R151 or any future train will never surpass the three of us in.
We pioneered Singapore’s MRT system. We were the trains that led the Singapore MRT to become one of the world’s most efficient and highest-quality metro systems. So, even as we retired rather unceremoniously, I still take great pride in having served Singapore so well for the past few decades, and I am sure both of my predecessors feel the same.
Farewell, Raffles. I hope that all 4 remaining generations of train sets will serve you well on the NSEWL.
