Siemens-equipped driverless underground metro line in Singapore starts operations

The commissioning of the Line, which has a total length of 42 kilometers and comprises 34 stations, will occur in three phases. Initially, service has commenced for DTL1; a section of four kilometers, with six stations and six trains in revenue operation Siemens supplies the signaling system as well as the traction power supply for all three sections of the Line. The double-track metro line is designed to transport up to 500,000 passengers per day when the Line is completed in 2017.

The current metro network in Singapore is about 180 kilometers long and is used by some 2.5 million commuters every day. The Downtown Line connects the residential areas in the northwest and east to Singapore's city center. The first section of the line that has now opened in the city center runs from the financial district to the Chinatown shopping district.

The second section, which comprises around 16 kilometers of track and twelve stations, will link the northwestern districts of Singapore to the central business district in 2016. The 21 kilometer connection of the eastern part is scheduled for completion in 2017.

Siemens supplied the automatic train control system Trainguard Sirius CBTC that uses Communication Based Train Control technology to permit driverless operation and Trackguard Westrace MK2 electronic interlockings of latest generation. The operations control system Controlguide Rail 9000 (ATS – Automatic Train Supervision) is used for automatic train monitoring. Siemens also installed the trackside and onboard equipment for fully automated train operation in unattended mode.

For the electrification of the entire line, Siemens equipped the traction power supply system for 750 VDC. Power is supplied from the 66 kV AC utility network and stepped down to 22kV AC to feed a medium-voltage ring that supplies to the traction substations, the stations and the depot with 22 kV AC using Siemens 8DA10 Switchgears. The traction substations are converts the 22 kV AC into 750 VDC using Sitras REC and distributes the electrical energy to the third rail through Sitras DSG Switchgear. The electrical energy recovered during the braking of the trains is fed back into the medium-voltage power system via Sitras TCI Inverters and thus made available to all other electrical loads.

To keep pace with Singapore's growing transport needs, the government announced in 2008 that it would be investing about 28 billion US dollars in expanding the railway network to a total track length of 360 kilometers as part of the “Master Plan 2030” program.

Editor
Silke Reh
+49 89 636 630368
silke.reh@siemens.com