MRT commuters at stations from Outram to Queenstown were upset and frustrated when train services were abruptly halted last night. Little did they know that a man had been run over by an oncoming train.
Chaos ensued when station managers failed to contain the situation properly, many STOMPers say.
Although shuttle buses were promised, they were unable to meet the demands of all 13,700 passengers affected.
The stations were in a mess as passengers scrambled to find alternative routes to their destinations, STOMPer Angela says.
To add to the confusion, no explanations were given regarding the service disruption.
Furthermore, announcements at Outram were only made in English, Many elderly commuters and foreigners were hence clueless about what was happening.
Another STOMPer Soon Shyang says that passengers onboard halted trains also found themselves left in the dark when cabin lights went off momentarily.
Angela says:
"MRT services were interrupted yesterday at Outram MRT and I was onboard.
"SMRT handled the situation rather badly.
"Announcements were made for passengers to go to the taxi stand to wait for free shuttle buses but there were no signs or proper crowd control.
"All passengers were left unattended, wondering where and when the shuttle bus will come.
"To make matter worse, there was an unfriendly bus driver who had an argument with one passenger.
"When no buses came, we waited for about 10-15mins before SMRT announced that the train services have been resumed.
"To make matter worse, announcements were made only in English and many Chinese nationals and elderly folks did not understand them.
"This is totally disappointing coming from SMRT.
"I hope the SMRT management will review their standard of procedure for crisis management".
Read what STOMPers Melissa, Victor and Charmaine have to say on the next page.
STOMPer Melissa was onboard the train at Queenstown when services were stopped.
She says:
"At about 8.15pm, the MRT train approached Queenstown mrt station and came to a sudden halt.
"After about 10 minutes, lights in the train went off. There was only light coming from the platform.
"Shortly after, we were told to alight from the train. Only the first door from the first cabin opened.
"The passengers alighted. The train was only halfway into Queenstown MRT station.
"There were many whispers but nobody spoke up.
"Soon there were sirens. Both the ambulance and police arrived at the platform scene.
"The crowd dispersed towards the control station and bus stops.
"Many of us passengers were left stranded at Queenstown station but not told clearly what is next and when relief would come".
Over at Outram MRT station, commuters were also becoming more irate.
STOMPer Soon Shyang says:
"MRT cabins blacked-out with only one light remaining turned on in each cabin.
"The train came to a halt at Redhill MRT station at 8:20pm on November 29".
Also upset by the lack of clear instructions, STOMPer Victor says:
"All trains from Outram and Queenstown stopped.
"Everyone has to alight and could not get cabs because everyone else was trying to call for one.
Referring to the way commuters were left helpless and stranded, STOMPerCharmaine says:
"Train service disruption at 8pm+?!
"Even if they provided bus serviced for us, not everyone would be able to get on!".
No comments:
Post a Comment