Facilities On The Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore) - Barrier-free Facilities

Barrier-free Facilities

A typical barrier-free route for an elevated station would start at the ramp entrance to the station and following the tactile path, would bring the elderly or the handicapped past the wider Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) gates & into the lift at the concourse level. The lift will feature braille plates on lift buttons, audio announcements and LED displays. Upon exiting from the lift at the platform level, the tactile path will lead them onto a designated waiting area where the doors of the middle train cars will be (and where the designated wheelchair space will be) to wait for the train. The tactile path may diverge at the concourse level to lead to the handicapped friendly toilet or passenger service centre. At all elevated stations where platform screen doors are not installed, tactile studs are installed along the platform edge to serve as reminder for them that they are getting too close to the edge.

The barrier-free route will differ slightly depending on whether the station is underground or located at the road median or design of the station but there will be at least 1 barrier free route for the disabled and the elderly at every station, leading from the street level to the platform level, though some stations will have more due to higher passenger traffic.

All stations on the North South Line (NSL) & stations constructed before 2001 on the East West Line (EWL) initially did not have barrier-free facilities such as lifts, ramps & tactile guidance systems for the elderly and disabled. In addition, all stations on the NSL & EWL initially did not have the wider AFC gates installed as well.

Since 2010, however, all 79 MRT stations were made barrier-free as part of a programme to make all MRT stations accessible to the elderly and the handicapped. Furthermore, all 79 MRT stations have wider AFC gates installed as well as part of a programme to make it easier for passengers with luggage or prams.