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Singapore train hits stationary one, injuring 25 people

Kyunghee Park (Bloomberg)

Singapore

Wed, November 15, 2017 Published on Nov. 15, 2017 Published on 2017-11-15T11:42:27+07:00

Police officers cordoned off a section of the platform after an SMRT train hit a stationary train in Singapore on Wednesday (Nov. 15, 2017). (The Straits Times/Jonathan Choo)

S

ingapore’s mass-rapid rail system suffered its second collision since the network began in 1987, when a train operated by SMRT Corp. hit a stationary one Wednesday.

Two SMRT employees and 23 passengers sustained light to moderate injuries and were sent to two hospitals, SMRT and Singapore’s Land Transport Authority said in a statement. They are investigating the incident, which took place around Joo Koon station in the western part of the city-state.

The incident is the latest blemish in a city known for its efficiency, tree-lined highways and smooth public transport network. Singapore’s mass transit system has been strained as the population burgeoned to more than 5.6 million from under 4 million in less than two decades, leading to multiple breakdowns especially in the past six years.

The first train collision occurred Aug. 5, 1993, when an east-bound train stopped longer than scheduled at a station due to a technical fault and was then hit by another train, according to the National Library Board’s resources. The train, which comprised six carriages, had a full capacity of 1,800 passengers, 156 of whom were injured during the peak-hour collision.