In a dramatic turn of events, 18 students found themselves racing against time on September 17th due to a massive disruption on the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) that delayed their arrival for the GCE N(A)-level humanities exam.

A representative from the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) announced that these students would not face penalties for their lateness. "They arrived before the exam officially ended and were given adequate time to settle in before starting the paper. Everyone was granted the full duration of the exam," she confirmed.

SEAB emphasized the importance of planning ahead for travel on exam days and has published guidelines for candidates to follow in case of major transport disruptions.

The disruption began around 7:30 AM due to a signaling fault affecting a hefty 27 stations. SMRT quickly informed the public via social media, noting the fault existed between Woodlands North and Bayshore stations. It wasn't until 8:54 AM that services resumed, and regular bus services were discontinued at that point.

In response to rising frustrations over transit reliability, SMRT Trains president Lam Sheau Kai described the recent issues as isolated incidents, assuring the public they are "not systemic issues across the rail network." However, this was the fifth disruption the MRT network experienced in just one month!

Just the night before, another fault left a six-station segment of the East-West Line completely out of service, a power supply issue that triggered a signaling failure. Earlier in the month, passengers faced a 40-minute delay on the North-South Line and further disruptions stretching from Woodlands to Yishun.

With the ongoing challenges faced by commuters, the reliability of the transport system remains under scrutiny as SMRT operates other lines, including the North-South and East-West Lines, as well as the Circle Line.