Singapore, 17 July 2018

LTA-SMRT Joint Release: Emergency Preparedness Exercise for Heightened Security Threats

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT will carry out an emergency preparedness exercise on Sunday, 29 July 2018 at the Circle Line’s Holland Village MRT Station from 12.30pm to 6pm.

2.  The conduct of emergency preparedness exercises are part of LTA’s efforts to regularly review security measures with public transport operators and other relevant agencies. Code-named ‘Exercise Station Guard’, the exercise aims to validate SMRT’s security measures, contingency plans and operational readiness at public transport nodes during heightened security situations. It also serves to raise public awareness of the security threats which Singapore faces, and familiarise commuters with how they should respond should such emergency situations occur in our public transport network. 

3.  This is the second emergency preparedness exercise to be conducted within a public transport node this year, following an earlier exercise conducted at Downtown Line’s Newton MRT Station in February this year.

4.  During the upcoming ‘Exercise Station Guard’ on 29 July 2018, commuters entering the Holland Village MRT station will have to undergo security screening and hence cater for additional travel time.

5.  As part of the security screening, commuters will be required to go through a screening detector and put their belongings through X-ray scanners before passing through the faregates. Commuters are advised to follow the instructions of the security officers when passing through the detectors.

6.  Mr Ngien Hoon Ping, LTA's Chief Executive and Chairman of the Public Transport Security Committee, said: “With the increase in security threats, there is a need for the authorities and members of the public to step up our vigilance, preparedness and response to potential threats. ‘Exercise Station Guard’ allows LTA and our public transport operators to review and strengthen our security measures, so that we can respond quickly and effectively to incidents on our public transport network. In line with the SGSecure movement, members of the public can expect more of such joint exercises to be carried out. We would also like to seek their understanding and cooperation to familiarise and prepare themselves in playing a part to prevent and respond to an attack.”

7.  Mr Lee Ling Wee, Chief Executive Officer of SMRT Trains, said: “SMRT works very closely with the authorities and security agencies to provide a safe and secure journey for our commuters. Regular security and emergency preparedness exercises such as ‘Exercise Station Guard’ are necessary to put to practice established response protocols and maintain vigilance. It also builds up the confidence and proficiency of our staff so that response plans can be mobilised quickly and effectively during an emergency. We ask for commuters’ patience and cooperation when these exercises are carried out in our MRT station.”

8.  Together with the SGSecure national movement to strengthen the security of public places and community resilience against security threats, security measures and checks at public transport nodes, such as the deployment of portable security screening detectors, will be progressively rolled out in the near future. LTA and the PTOs have also launched the Public Resilience videos at public transport nodes to educate and prepare commuters on how to respond, help themselves and others in times of emergency. Commuters can play their part to detect and report suspicious activities to the Police or through the SGSecure mobile application on their smart phones when travelling on our public transport system.

Please click here for the full joint release. 

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