A Better
Commute Downtown with Downtown Line 1
URL:
http://app.lta.gov.sg/apps/news/page.aspx?c=2&id=af4ea91c-8ece-4410-9ab0-c039b741232f
When opened on 22 December 2013, commuters can look forward to a
brand new MRT line, as well as a new commuting experience when they
travel on the Downtown Line 1 (DTL1). The Land Transport Authority
(LTA) will introduce new designs for queue lines and reserved
seats. Ambient music will be played in all DTL1 stations.
Root Cause Survey
The new initiatives are part of a trial aimed at improving overall
commuting experience and are ideas from a study involving some
1,000 commuters conducted by LTA and the Singapore Kindness
Movement between February and July 2013. The survey was
commissioned to better understand the key factors contributing to
the public transport experience, and explore the reasons behind
ungracious commuter behaviour. The survey also helped to identify
possible measures to enhance the travel experience.
The survey showed that commuter behaviour has the strongest
influence on the overall public transport experience. Besides
commuter behaviour, the survey findings also highlighted other
factors that contribute to the public transport experience, such as
the design of the stations, as well as the environment of the
stations.
New Designs for Queue Lines and
Reserved Seats
To ensure that commuters can move in and out of the trains in a
more orderly manner, LTA will introduce new queue line designs for
all the six DTL1 stations.
At the Telok Ayer and Promenade DTL1 stations, the queue line
design will be a set of lines drawn parallel to the platform screen
doors to show clearly where commuters should queue. For the DTL1
stations at Chinatown, Downtown, Bayfront and Bugis, a modified
version of the existing queue markings used in other MRT stations
will be adopted. This modified design will come with a bigger
“funnel” for commuters entering and exiting the trains. LTA will
review the effectiveness of the two new designs before deciding if
they should be introduced to other stations. Please refer
to Annex
A for the new queue line designs.
LTA will also introduce four new reserved seat designs on the DTL1
trains. These striking designs will signal more clearly the seats’
intended use for commuters with mobility needs. Commuters can vote
for the design which they feel would be most effective through SMS
or Facebook when the DTL1 opens on 22 December. The voting will
close on 1 February 2014. The result of the polls will help
determine which design for reserved seats will be applied to all
DTL1 trains. Please refer to Annex
B for the new reserved seat designs.
First MRT Line with In-Station
Music
DTL1 will be the first MRT line to have background music played
within all the stations. Aimed at providing a more pleasant
environment for MRT commuters, LTA will review the feedback before
evaluating if this initiative should be rolled out to other MRT
stations.
Free all-day
travel on Downtown Line for 11 days after
opening
URL: http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/free-all-day-travel-downtown-line-11-days-after-opening
Initially known as the “Downtown Extension” of
the Circle Line when it was first announced on 14 June 2005, almost
8.5 years ago, the first stage of the Downtown Line has become a
reality since 10am today (7 December 2013) and will commence
service 2 weeks later, on 22 December 2013. 
From the articles I read on LTA’s website, it
seems that the experience on DTL is different from that on the
other MRT lines. How different is it on the Downtown
Line?
If you visited the Open House just now, do share
with us your experience on the DTL. 
