Although I did not catch the first train in the morning at 5.37 am since it is so early, I did catch a ride on the train this afternoon straight after school from Marymount Station to Bishan Interchange, then off to Paya Lebar. Well, it is not very crowded at that time, there were about thirty passengers on the platform, where more than half of the passengers who boarded from Marymount Station at that time were students from my school.
Trains nowadays are changing in many ways. The front and rear carriages have each a huge window to allow passengers, especially curious children, to look into the tunnel as the train moves from station to station. Interesting, but this requires a redesign of the emergency exit doors at the ends of the train. Also known as ‘detrainment doors’, the ends of the newer trains are designed like jaws, with the top and bottom jaws springing open in the event of an emergency, where a three-section ramp is released for evacuation.
Next time, if you are meeting someone on the train, the task of you locating them (or them locating you) will be much easier. The seats in each of the three carriages have been colour coded to allow passengers to identify the section of the train they are on. The colours are green, maroon and blue (at the centre of the train).
Kim Chuan Depot, measuring 160 metres wide and 27 metres high, is the world’s largest underground train depot. With a floor area of 11 hectares, it can store up to 77 three-car trains. To save space, the land above the depot can be used for future development of up to nine storeys high. This depot also houses the tallest underground warehouse storage system in Singapore, which retrieves spare parts within four minutes. Is there a chance for me to take a look into the depot with my own eyes?
Next up is the lovely set of stamps right here in front of me. Finally, a circle shaped stamp by SingPost in more than ten years! On the 1st Local stamp, the Circle Line system is placed on the Singapore map. Also featured on the stamps is a new Circle Line station in the underground system (80 cents), the Circle Line train ($1.10), and the Circle Line Operation Control Centre situated in Kim Chuan Depot ($2). A complete set of stamps issue comes with a relatively hefty price tag of $4.16.
