The Kawasaki Heavy Industries & CSR Qingdao Sifang C151B is the fifth generation electric multiple unit rolling stock in operation on the existing North–South (NSL) and East–West (EWL) lines of Singapore's Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, manufactured by Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) & CRRC Qingdao Sifang under Contract 151B. 45 trains were purchased and all of them have been delivered to Singapore as of 12 April 2017.[3]SMRT took delivery of the first 2 train cars on 21 May 2015. These trains increased frequency for the two MRT lines, North–South and East–West lines.
These trains retain the same IGBT-VVVF traction equipment found on the earlier C751B and C151A sets, also featuring SMRT's "Pixels" livery introduced on the Bukit Panjang LRTC801A, and was going to be on the refurbished C651 trains, until the project was cancelled in 2018. These trains are the first to be fitted with STARiS 2.0,[4] which is embedded in the door's overhead panels, as factory stock and also the first amongst the rolling stock used on the North–South and East–West lines to have electric door actuators rather than the traditional pneumatic door actuators on previous generations of rolling stock, allowing smoother and more reliable door operations, reducing delays.[5] The first C151B train (Set 601/602) made its debut on the North–South Line on 16 April 2017.
Although there were some C151Bs housed in Tuas Depot since the inception of the Tuas West Extension, the C151Bs did not begin revenue service on the full-stretch of the East–West line only until 6 May 2018, when the line switched to the new signalling system. Before that, the C151Bs running on the EWL only ran on the Tuas West Extension between Gul Circle and Tuas Link as it was the only section that had the new signalling system installed. On 27 May 2018, with the complete transition to the new signalling system, all 45 C151B trains have entered service on the North–South and East–West lines.
Builder's plate of a C151B train
Retrofitting works
On 6 November 2024, SMRT announced that, in collaboration with CRRC Qingdao Sifang, one C151B train will be retrofitted as a proof-of-concept. Condition monitoring system will be added for preventive maintainance. In addition, the Train Information and Management System (TIMS) and air-conditioning system will be refurbished.[6]
On 30 December 2024, set 649/650 was sent back to China for retrofitting works, scheduled to be completed by mid-2026.
Kawasaki will be responsible for the overall project management, design, manufacturing of bogies and procurement of major components. CRRC Sifang will be in charge of manufacturing, final fitting and assembly of complete MRT trains and factory testing. Kawasaki (Singapore) will be responsible for the delivery of complete MRT trains to the depot, on-site testing and commissioning. The new MRT trains are scheduled to be delivered to Singapore from 2015 onwards.[10]
The C151B trains is the fourth commuter type Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) after the C751B and C151A trains which features electric systems fully manufactured by Fuji Electric. These electric systems are made in Japan. Propulsion is controlled by VVVF inverter with two-level IGBT semiconductor controller, rated at 415 kVA. Each inverter unit controls two motors on one bogie (1C2M), and one motor car features two of such units. Motors are three-phase AC induction type, model MLR111, with a maximum output of 150 kW (200 hp).
Instead of other trains which use the older STARIS system, the C151B is the first train type equipped with STARIS 2.0 which consists of two LCD screens displaying the travel information, such as the upcoming stations the train will arrive at, door closing warnings and attractions nearby the station.
The car numbers of the trains range from x601 to x690, where x depends on the carriage type. Individual cars are assigned a 4 digit serial number. A complete six-car trainset consists of an identical twin set of one driving trailer (DT) and two motor (M) cars permanently coupled together.
For example, set 617/618 consists of carriages 3617, 1617, 2617, 2618, 1618 and 3618.
The first digit identifies the car number, where the first car has a 3, the second has a 1, and the third has a 2.
The second digit is always a 6, part of the identification numbers
The third digit and fourth digit are the train identification numbers. A full-length train of six cars has two different identification numbers. For example, 629/630 (normal coupling) or 629/640 (cross coupling).
Currently, it is the second train with SMRT's new white pixelated livery with red, yellow and black stripes, which is similar to Bukit Panjang LRT's C801A, as compared to the older SMRT trains. The C151B trains are the first trains to have a full white front unlike the older batch of trains with a black front. The first eight trains received the new livery with the 1st Generation SMRT logos, the ninth train received the 2nd Generation SMRT logos while the subsequent 36 trains received the 3rd Generation SMRT logos. The front and rear of the train were albeit with different headlights, which is the same as the C151C trains.
