SINGAPORE – Commuters can expect more reliable and smoother trips on the Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) after extensive system and hardware upgrades are completed by the end of 2026.
The upgrades include replacing 16.6km of power rails that supply electricity to the trains, which is now close to completion, with about 98% of the work done. The renewal works, which started in 2018, also include the replacement of the BPLRT signalling system with a new communications-based train control signalling system like the ones used on MRT lines.
The signalling system enables trains to exchange real-time location and speed data with trackside systems. Trackside systems monitor the location of trains within their zone, calculate safe distances between them, and signal trains to speed up or slow down.
Operations control centre systems – which oversee real-time train operations, network safety and efficiency – were also upgraded. Operations control centre systems – which oversee real-time train operations, network safety and efficiency – have been upgraded.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA), in a statement on Oct 15, said the upgrades have helped boost BPLRT reliability indicators. For instance, trains on the LRT system clocked 443,000 car-km between delays in September 2026, up from 53,000 car-km in 2017.