Announcements & Signages in MRT Stations

[eX.A.K.R.]

(splitted off from the MRT/LRT news thread)

In my opinion, train announcements should ideally be in all four languages, but I don't think we need so many different announcements on every single thing - information on train stations, connecting lines, and such should be enough, as well as the occasional security alert announcement.

Here's how I think they could do it (asteriks (*) denote variables, bracketed words (example) are optional):

Station announcements:

"*. Doors on the * will open. *. * 边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Example: "Braddell. Doors on the left will open. 布莱德.左边的车门将会打开.　[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Stations with cross-platform interchange:
"* Interchange. Passengers may alight and transfer for a * Line train service towards * (via *) on the opposite platform. Doors on the * will open. * 转换站.乘客可在本站的对面月台转搭(经*)到*的*线列车服务.* 边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Example: "City Hall Interchange. Passengers may alight and transfer for an East-West Line train service towards Pasir Ris via Bugis. Doors on the left will open. 政府大厦转换站.乘客可在本站的对面月台转搭经武吉士到巴西立的东西线列车服务.左边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

For stations with cross-platform interchanges on both sides of the train (i.e. Jurong East for North-South Line, Tanah Merah for Changi Airport Shuttle):
"* Interchange. This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. Passengers may transfer to a * Line train service towards * (via *) on the opposite platform to the left, and to a * Line train service towards * (via *) on the opposite platform to the right. *转换站.本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.乘客可在左边的对面月台转搭(经*)到*的*线列车服务,或在右边的对面月台转搭(经*)到*的*线列车服务.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Example: "Jurong East Interchange. This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. Passengers may transfer to a East-West Line train service towards Pasir Ris via Raffles Place on the opposite platform to the left, and to a East-West Line train service towards Joo Koon on the opposite platform to the right. 裕廊东转换站.本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.乘客可在左边的对面月台转搭经莱佛士坊到巴西立的东西线列车服务,或在右边的对面月台转搭到裕群的东西线列车服务.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Interchanges without cross-platform transfers:
"* Interchange. Passengers may transfer to the * Line at this station. Doors on the * will open. *转换站.乘客可在本站转搭*线的列车.* 边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Example: "Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Passengers may transfer to the North-East Line and Circle Line at this station. Doors on the right will open. 多美歌转换站.乘客可在本站转搭东北线或环线的列车服务.右边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Terminals: "* (Terminal). This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. (Passengers travelling beyond this station, please wait for the next train.) Doors on the * will open. *(终站).本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.(想前往本站之外的乘客,请等下一列列车服务.)* 边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Examples: "Marina Bay Terminal. This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. Doors on the right will open. 滨海湾终站.本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.右边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"
"Yishun. This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. Passengers travelling beyond this station, please wait for the next train. Doors on the right will open. 义顺.本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.想前往本站之外的乘客,请等下一列列车服务.右边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

For station announcements, rather than just telling passengers to stand behind the yellow line, tell them where the train service is terminating too (got this idea from watching videos of Hong Kong's ex-KCR lines). For example:

"The train towards Yishun is approaching platform A. For your own safety, please stand behind the yellow line. 前往义顺的列车将抵达A号月台.为了您自己的安全,请站在黄线后面.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

And for non-stop trains:
"A non-stop train will be passing through platform A. For your own safety, please stand behind the yellow line. 不停站列车将经过A号月台.为了您自己的安全,请站在黄线后面.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

For trains that will stop but not pick up passengers (test trains, etc.):
"The train at platform B is not for passenger service. Please wait for the next passenger service train. 在B号月台的列车是不载乘客的. 请等下一趟可载乘客的列车服务. [Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

As for messages asking you to mind the platform gap, the SMRT bus route 950 advertisement, etc., all these should be dropped. The announcements regarding platform gaps are rather superflous on our MRT system, which has very narrow platform gaps and no curved platforms, where gaps could be wider. As well, in the early days of the MRT (when gaps on surface and elevated stations were wider), there weren't any such announcements and things got along well (even more smoothly than today, if you ask me).

The door closing announcement should also be dropped, in favour of just a simple buzzer; 2 seconds before the doors begin to close, the buzzer will begin to sound, after which the doors will begin to close. When the door closes, the buzzer stops. This is a throwback to the early days when there is only a door closing chime to warn of the doors closing (which can still be heard sometimes - I took a refurbished C151 train a few months back, and the train driver used the chime in addition to the door closing announcement). The buzzer is more universal than having to announce a message in multiple languages, and also solves the problem of not having enough time to cycle through all the languages.

As for "emergency" messages (eg. break of service, emergency evacuation, etc.), these should also ideally be pre-recorded in all four languages as well.

To those who argue that announcements in one language is enough, you have to realise that, apart from station names, there are still a significant number of Singaporeans who use the MRT and who doesn't speak English that well (if at all) and hence can't really understand the English announcements - my own mother being one of them. Announcements in all four languages not only for station names, but for other information as well, will go a long way in guiding them how to better use the system.

[jpatokal]

Are you serious? Singapore's metro announcements are already incredibly verbose, annoying and tedious, especially when you add in all the stupid public service announcements about suspicious articles, no drinking or eating, blah blah blah, and you want to make them even longer?

I'll go for the opposite tack: I think there should be no announcements at all in the stations, and train announcements should be limited to the name of the station. And guess what? This is the norm in Europe and the USA. (Japan, though, does love loooong announcements. Mamonaku ichiban-sen ni Misono-Urawa yuki hachiryou densha ga mairimasu, kiiroi sen no uchigawa ni o-sagari kudasai...)

MRT stations are already equipped with displays, from which you can easily find out when the next train is coming. All trains should also be equipped with LED scrollers and those nifty blinking map displays including which side will open; however, in really crowded trains it can be hard to see them, so minimal announcements ("Next station is Orchard", then "Orchard" on arrival) are still useful.

[lexovator_mhjpn]

Originally Posted by jpatokal

Are you serious? Singapore's metro announcements are already incredibly verbose, annoying and tedious, especially when you add in all the stupid public service announcements about suspicious articles, no drinking or eating, blah blah blah, and you want to make them even longer?

I'll go for the opposite tack: I think there should be no announcements at all in the stations, and train announcements should be limited to the name of the station. And guess what? This is the norm in Europe and the USA. (Japan, though, does love loooong announcements. Mamonaku ichiban-sen ni Misono-Urawa yuki hachiryou densha ga mairimasu, kiiroi sen no uchigawa ni o-sagari kudasai...)

MRT stations are already equipped with displays, from which you can easily find out when the next train is coming. All trains should also be equipped with LED scrollers and those nifty blinking map displays including which side will open; however, in really crowded trains it can be hard to see them, so minimal announcements ("Next station is Orchard", then "Orchard" on arrival) are still useful.

haha yes the japanese announcements are pretty longwinded (the stn name is always announced twice)

I think the LED should be used to denote multilingual text!

eg. Next, Orchard,
xia yi zhan, wu jie
berikutnya, Orchard
(tamil)

[ddes]

I wouldn't have problems with multi-lingual announcements if we really had a huge percentage of the population who takes the MRT that doesn't have at least some basic form of English. To insinuate that commuters don't have that basic understanding is demeaning to them, and I must find it a miracle that they even thought of using the MRT network to get around the island in the first place.

Besides, most of the names in Singapore sound virtually the same in every language because it's translated as how it sounds in English.

And when all else fails, just open your mouth and ask a fellow commuter, like most who think they are lost or are unsure, do.

[lexovator_mhjpn]

Originally Posted by ddes

I wouldn't have problems with multi-lingual announcements if we really had a huge percentage of the population who takes the MRT that doesn't have at least some basic form of English. To insinuate that commuters don't have that basic understanding is demeaning to them, and I must find it a miracle that they even thought of using the MRT network to get around the island in the first place.

Besides, most of the names in Singapore sound virtually the same in every language because it's translated as how it sounds in English.

And when all else fails, just open your mouth and ask a fellow commuter, like most who think they are lost or are unsure, do.

Pioneer - xian qu
jurong east - yu lang dong
city hall - zheng fu da sha
clarke quay - ke la ma tou
harbourfront - gang wan
et al.

[ddes]

Originally Posted by lexovator_mhjpn

Pioneer - xian qu
jurong east - yu lang dong
city hall - zheng fu da sha
clarke quay - ke la ma tou
harbourfront - gang wan
et al.

Pasir Ris - ba xi li
Tampines - dan bi ni
Simei - xi mei
Bedok - wu luo
Kembangan - jing wan an
Kallang - jia leng
Bugis - wu ji shi
Dhoby Ghaut - duo mei ge
Bishan - bi Shan
Novena - nuo Wei na
Newton - niu dun
Somerset - suo mei sai
Yishun - yi shun
Yew Tee - you chi
Sengkang - sheng gang
Hougang - hou gang
Little India - xiao ying du
Bartley - ba te li
Lorong Chuan - luo nong quan
I could go on and on to prove that yours is the exception.

[lexovator_mhjpn]

Originally Posted by ddes

Pasir Ris - ba xi li
Tampines - dan bi ni
Simei - xi mei
Bedok - wu luo
Kembangan - jing wan an
Kallang - jia leng
Bugis - wu ji shi
Dhoby Ghaut - duo mei ge
Bishan - bi Shan
Novena - nuo Wei na
Newton - niu dun
Somerset - suo mei sai
Yishun - yi shun
Yew Tee - you chi
Sengkang - sheng gang
Hougang - hou gang
Little India - xiao ying du
Bartley - ba te li
Lorong Chuan - luo nong quan
I could go on and on to prove that yours is the exception.

in that case xiao ying du should be 利特樂因帝啊
bedok and wu luo dont sound similar at all.

i'm now going to name all the stations from wikipedia in mandarin that have different pronounciatoins (now i can understand why NEL did it in eng and mandarin)

jurong east - wu lang dong
admiralty - hai jun bu
ang mo kio - hong mao qiao
toa payoh - da ba yao
city hall - zheng fu da sha
raffles place - lai fo shi fang
marina bay - bin hai wan
outram park - ou nan yuan
tiong bahru - zhong ba lu
redhill - hong shan
queenstown - nu huang zhen
commonwealth - lian bang
chinese garden - yu hua yuan
lakeside - hu pan
boon lay - wen li
joo koon - xian qu
expo - bo lan
changi airport - zhang yi ji chang
chinatown - niu che shui
farrer park - hua la gong yuan
boon keng - wen da
kovan - gao wen
buangkok - wan guo
sengkang - shenggang
punggol - bang er
bras basah - bai sheng
esplanade - bin hai zhong xin
nicoll highway - ni gao da dao
stadium - ti yu chang
tai seng - da cheng
botanic gardens - zhi wu yuan
holland village - he lan cun
one north - wei yi
hillview - shan jing
beauty world - mei shi jie
6th avenue - di liu dao
duchess - gong jue fu ren

[lexovator_mhjpn]

Originally Posted by eX.A.K.R.

(splitted off from the MRT/LRT news thread)

In my opinion, train announcements should ideally be in all four languages, but I don't think we need so many different announcements on every single thing - information on train stations, connecting lines, and such should be enough, as well as the occasional security alert announcement.

Here's how I think they could do it (asteriks (*) denote variables, bracketed words (example) are optional):

Station announcements:

"*. Doors on the * will open. *. * 边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Example: "Braddell. Doors on the left will open. 布莱德.左边的车门将会打开.　[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Stations with cross-platform interchange:
"* Interchange. Passengers may alight and transfer for a * Line train service towards * (via *) on the opposite platform. Doors on the * will open. * 转换站.乘客可在本站的对面月台转搭(经*)到*的*线列车服务.* 边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Example: "City Hall Interchange. Passengers may alight and transfer for an East-West Line train service towards Pasir Ris via Bugis. Doors on the left will open. 政府大厦转换站.乘客可在本站的对面月台转搭经武吉士到巴西立的东西线列车服务.左边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

For stations with cross-platform interchanges on both sides of the train (i.e. Jurong East for North-South Line, Tanah Merah for Changi Airport Shuttle):
"* Interchange. This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. Passengers may transfer to a * Line train service towards * (via *) on the opposite platform to the left, and to a * Line train service towards * (via *) on the opposite platform to the right. *转换站.本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.乘客可在左边的对面月台转搭(经*)到*的*线列车服务,或在右边的对面月台转搭(经*)到*的*线列车服务.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Example: "Jurong East Interchange. This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. Passengers may transfer to a East-West Line train service towards Pasir Ris via Raffles Place on the opposite platform to the left, and to a East-West Line train service towards Joo Koon on the opposite platform to the right. 裕廊东转换站.本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.乘客可在左边的对面月台转搭经莱佛士坊到巴西立的东西线列车服务,或在右边的对面月台转搭到裕群的东西线列车服务.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Interchanges without cross-platform transfers:
"* Interchange. Passengers may transfer to the * Line at this station. Doors on the * will open. *转换站.乘客可在本站转搭*线的列车.* 边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Example: "Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Passengers may transfer to the North-East Line and Circle Line at this station. Doors on the right will open. 多美歌转换站.乘客可在本站转搭东北线或环线的列车服务.右边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Terminals: "* (Terminal). This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. (Passengers travelling beyond this station, please wait for the next train.) Doors on the * will open. *(终站).本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.(想前往本站之外的乘客,请等下一列列车服务.)* 边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

Examples: "Marina Bay Terminal. This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. Doors on the right will open. 滨海湾终站.本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.右边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"
"Yishun. This train service terminates at this station. All passengers please alight. Passengers travelling beyond this station, please wait for the next train. Doors on the right will open. 义顺.本列车服务将在本站终止服务.所有乘客请在本站下车.想前往本站之外的乘客,请等下一列列车服务.右边的车门将会打开.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

For station announcements, rather than just telling passengers to stand behind the yellow line, tell them where the train service is terminating too (got this idea from watching videos of Hong Kong's ex-KCR lines). For example:

"The train towards Yishun is approaching platform A. For your own safety, please stand behind the yellow line. 前往义顺的列车将抵达A号月台.为了您自己的安全,请站在黄线后面.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

And for non-stop trains:
"A non-stop train will be passing through platform A. For your own safety, please stand behind the yellow line. 不停站列车将经过A号月台.为了您自己的安全,请站在黄线后面.[Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

For trains that will stop but not pick up passengers (test trains, etc.):
"The train at platform B is not for passenger service. Please wait for the next passenger service train. 在B号月台的列车是不载乘客的. 请等下一趟可载乘客的列车服务. [Malay equivalent]. [Tamil equivalent]"

As for messages asking you to mind the platform gap, the SMRT bus route 950 advertisement, etc., all these should be dropped. The announcements regarding platform gaps are rather superflous on our MRT system, which has very narrow platform gaps and no curved platforms, where gaps could be wider. As well, in the early days of the MRT (when gaps on surface and elevated stations were wider), there weren't any such announcements and things got along well (even more smoothly than today, if you ask me).

The door closing announcement should also be dropped, in favour of just a simple buzzer; 2 seconds before the doors begin to close, the buzzer will begin to sound, after which the doors will begin to close. When the door closes, the buzzer stops. This is a throwback to the early days when there is only a door closing chime to warn of the doors closing (which can still be heard sometimes - I took a refurbished C151 train a few months back, and the train driver used the chime in addition to the door closing announcement). The buzzer is more universal than having to announce a message in multiple languages, and also solves the problem of not having enough time to cycle through all the languages.

As for "emergency" messages (eg. break of service, emergency evacuation, etc.), these should also ideally be pre-recorded in all four languages as well.

To those who argue that announcements in one language is enough, you have to realise that, apart from station names, there are still a significant number of Singaporeans who use the MRT and who doesn't speak English that well (if at all) and hence can't really understand the English announcements - my own mother being one of them. Announcements in all four languages not only for station names, but for other information as well, will go a long way in guiding them how to better use the system.

Yes! I think the chime and beeps would be better. I also dont think a buzzer is that necessary for all announcements.

Next Stop, _______
Alight for the ______ line

xia yi zhan, _______
_______ de jiao huan zhan.

stesyen berikutnya, _________
turun untuk ________

(tamil)

when arriving at stn...

Doors open on the left/right. Mind the gap
zuo/you bian de che men hui da kai. xiao xin kong jian
pintu akan sebelah kiri/kanan. awas ruang platform

(tamil)

terminus stn...

thank you for traveling with ______. All passengers please alight. Mind the gap.

xie xie guan ling _____. suo you cheng ke qing zhunbei xia che. xiao xing kong jian

terimah kasih untuk perjalanan dengan _______. harap semua penumpang turun. awas ruang platform.

(tamil)

centre platform.

alight on the left for _____ and on the right for _______. mind the gap.
wang ___ de cheng ke qing yong ____ ko. wang ____ de cheng ke qing yong ___ ko.
turun di sebelah kiri untuk _____ dan di sebelah kanan untuk _______. pikiran kesenjangan.
(tamil)

platform

the train bound for ______ is approaching. please stand behind the yellow line and mind the gap.
kai wang ___ de lie che ma shang yao dao le. qing zhan zai huang xian hou mian. xiao xing kong jian.
kereta terikat untuk mendekati ______. berdiri di belakang garis kuning. awas ruang platform.
(tamil)

sorry i'm typing in pinyin... this com cant permit chinese typing

[RafflesCity]

Perhaps they should simply conduct surveys (if they haven't already done so) on the usefulness of the current announcements and gauge the feedback.

While having announcements in the 4 official languages is a nice showcase of the multicultural fabric here, it must be tedious on board the trains day-in, day-out.

I'm wondering myself whether the Tamil announcements are necessarily as crucial as the Mandarin ones, as I'm of the impression that most Indians have a better grasp of English than say, their mainland Chinese counterparts. And nowadays there are significant groups of Indians from other regions that do not use Tamil here.

[lexovator_mhjpn]

Originally Posted by RafflesCity

Perhaps they should simply conduct surveys (if they haven't already done so) on the usefulness of the current announcements and gauge the feedback.

While having announcements in the 4 official languages is a nice showcase of the multicultural fabric here, it must be tedious on board the trains day-in, day-out.

I'm wondering myself whether the Tamil announcements are necessarily as crucial as the Mandarin ones, as I'm of the impression that most Indians have a better grasp of English than say, their mainland Chinese counterparts. And nowadays there are significant groups of Indians from other regions that do not use Tamil here.

Maybe the announcements can be shortened/simplified for the less used languages.

in japan/korea only some announcements in english.

[Leichestern]

The new announcements on the SMRT lines are so *shivers* chinky. It sounds like a Chinese speaking woman struggling to speak proper English. Completely the opposite of the super announcements posh announcements on Changi Airport's skytrains. I prefer the old announcements...and the old chyme.

Anyway if I could run LTA, I'd standardise everything including the announcements and merge SMRT and SBS Transit to improve service and remove unnessary waste on corporate identity. As far as announcements go, I think it's best if we use English since everyone should have some basic knowledge of the language. Hearing the same announcement in 4 languages for every station is plain irritating. I guess they're ok for the convenience of our elderly population but should be removed in the future. In a 2 or 3 decades everyone WILL have some basic comprehension of English unless they didnt attend primary school.

I like the announcements on the London Underground. Singapore should follow some parts of their format. They're simple, clear and succinct. As for the chyme, we should make it sound more pleasant like the one used on Swiss trains. Anyway, beblow are some announcements that I have comed up.


For mind the gap: "Please mind the gap"

To denote line and direction: "This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

For stations with no interchanges: "Woodlands....Woodlands. Please mind the gap"

Next station: "The next station is Admiralty. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay" or "Next stop/station Admiralty. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

Next station (interchange): "The next station is Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Change for the North East line and Circle line. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

For stations with interchanges: "This is Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Change here for the North East line and Circle line...Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Please mind the gap"

For terminus: "Marina Bay...This train service terminates here, all passengers please alight...Marina Bay"

[mcarling]

Originally Posted by Leichestern

Anyway if I could run LTA, I'd standardise everything including the announcements and merge SMRT and SBS Transit to improve service and remove unnessary waste on corporate identity.

The effect of combining SMRT and SBS transit would be to reduce the quality of service and increase fares. Competition is needed to ensure quality of service and efficient operations. We need a third competitor.

[nathpoop]

For terminus station,

i.e. Pasir Ris Terminal, This train service terminates at this station. (Thankyou Announcement)
巴西立种点站，本列车会在本停止服务。(Thankyou announcement)
(Malay and Tamil equivalent, if needed)

For Interchanges (Not cross-platform interchanges)

i.e. Dhoby Ghaut Interchange, Interchange station for the North East Line towards Habourfront Interchange or Punggol, and the Circle Line towards Harbourfront Interchange Via Botanic Gardens Interchange.

多美歌转换站，东北地铁线还有地铁环线的转换站。
(Malay and Tamil equivalent, if needed)

[mrtfreak]

Originally Posted by Leichestern

For mind the gap: "Please mind the gap"

To denote line and direction: "This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

For stations with no interchanges: "Woodlands....Woodlands. Please mind the gap"

Next station: "The next station is Admiralty. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay" or "Next stop/station Admiralty. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

Next station (interchange): "The next station is Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Change for the North East line and Circle line. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

For stations with interchanges: "This is Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Change here for the North East line and Circle line...Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Please mind the gap"

For terminus: "Marina Bay...This train service terminates here, all passengers please alight...Marina Bay"

Prior to the introduction of through service to Changi Airport and for sometime there after, they did use the end-destination denotation after the next station announcement for SMRT lines (NEL hadn't opened). Something along the lines of: Next stop, Bukit Batok. This train ends at Marina Bay.

But stating the end-destination after each next station announcement is unnecessary and tedious to listen to. I'd only say those would be welcome for the short working services run during peak hours (through NS to EW line services, Jurong East - Yew Tee shuttle, Yishun - Marina Bay shuttle). Even then, the end-destination should be about the altered destination (eg. through service denotes from Yew Tee to Jurong East that train ends at Pasir Ris, Yew Tee shuttle bound for Yew Tee denotes Yew Tee but not for Jurong East).

While the new SMRT announcements may seem a bit aloof and unprofessional, I find those done on the Circle Line to be better. Interchange stations are announced and transfer options highlighted. Upon arrival, the station name is mentioned and more detailed transfer options once again highlighted. SBST lacks this more detailed information upon arrival (eg. Next Station, Serangoon Interchange. Passengers may alight and change to the Circle Line. Serangoon station.).

Also, perhaps the reason why we should avoid multi-lingual announcements of stations is so that those less familiar with English become more better at recognising the English station names. I don't need people coming up to me and asking where is "Zheng Fu Da Sha" station when I don't understand Mandarin. It has happened before and I find it annoying because:
1) The person would expect me to know if it is on an announcement and put up on signage at the stations
2) I'm unable to understand the person let alone help them at all

Most of the translated names sound alike the English names and I think this is intentional on LTA's part. However, for those that don't sound like the English names at all, aren't exactly helpful in bridging the understanding gap at all.

[lexovator_mhjpn]

Originally Posted by mrtfreak

Prior to the introduction of through service to Changi Airport and for sometime there after, they did use the end-destination denotation after the next station announcement for SMRT lines (NEL hadn't opened). Something along the lines of: Next stop, Bukit Batok. This train ends at Marina Bay.

But stating the end-destination after each next station announcement is unnecessary and tedious to listen to. I'd only say those would be welcome for the short working services run during peak hours (through NS to EW line services, Jurong East - Yew Tee shuttle, Yishun - Marina Bay shuttle). Even then, the end-destination should be about the altered destination (eg. through service denotes from Yew Tee to Jurong East that train ends at Pasir Ris, Yew Tee shuttle bound for Yew Tee denotes Yew Tee but not for Jurong East).

While the new SMRT announcements may seem a bit aloof and unprofessional, I find those done on the Circle Line to be better. Interchange stations are announced and transfer options highlighted. Upon arrival, the station name is mentioned and more detailed transfer options once again highlighted. SBST lacks this more detailed information upon arrival (eg. Next Station, Serangoon Interchange. Passengers may alight and change to the Circle Line. Serangoon station.).

Also, perhaps the reason why we should avoid multi-lingual announcements of stations is so that those less familiar with English become more better at recognising the English station names. I don't need people coming up to me and asking where is "Zheng Fu Da Sha" station when I don't understand Mandarin. It has happened before and I find it annoying because:
1) The person would expect me to know if it is on an announcement and put up on signage at the stations
2) I'm unable to understand the person let alone help them at all

Most of the translated names sound alike the English names and I think this is intentional on LTA's part. However, for those that don't sound like the English names at all, aren't exactly helpful in bridging the understanding gap at all.

Maybe thats why they did the alphanumeric codes.
Tokyo Metro also did the same idea and has pamphlets with directions in four official languages. STB also does it in Japanese and Korean.

[mcarling]

Originally Posted by lexovator_mhjpn

Tokyo Metro also ... has pamphlets with directions in four official languages.

While I prefer English-only announcements, I think multilingual pamphlets with directions in all four official languages would be a very good idea. It might be worthwhile to print pamphlets with directions in all six UN languages (English, French, Chinese, Spanish, Russian, and Arabic) plus Malay, Tamil, and maybe Thai and Japanese. If I were approached by someone needing MRT directions in a language I couldn't understand, I would take them to get a multilingual pamphlet if one were available.

The front cover could read "Singapore Transit Guide" in 8 or 10 languages and then each pair of facing pages could include a system map with station names in both English and a second language plus an explanation of how to pay for and ride the MRT, LRT, buses, and taxis in the second language.

We want and need Singapore to be a cosmopolitan international city. Multilingual pamphlets would help.

[lexovator_mhjpn]

Originally Posted by Leichestern

The new announcements on the SMRT lines are so *shivers* chinky. It sounds like a Chinese speaking woman struggling to speak proper English. Completely the opposite of the super announcements posh announcements on Changi Airport's skytrains. I prefer the old announcements...and the old chyme.

Anyway if I could run LTA, I'd standardise everything including the announcements and merge SMRT and SBS Transit to improve service and remove unnessary waste on corporate identity. As far as announcements go, I think it's best if we use English since everyone should have some basic knowledge of the language. Hearing the same announcement in 4 languages for every station is plain irritating. I guess they're ok for the convenience of our elderly population but should be removed in the future. In a 2 or 3 decades everyone WILL have some basic comprehension of English unless they didnt attend primary school.

I like the announcements on the London Underground. Singapore should follow some parts of their format. They're simple, clear and succinct. As for the chyme, we should make it sound more pleasant like the one used on Swiss trains. Anyway, beblow are some announcements that I have comed up.


For mind the gap: "Please mind the gap"

To denote line and direction: "This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

For stations with no interchanges: "Woodlands....Woodlands. Please mind the gap"

Next station: "The next station is Admiralty. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay" or "Next stop/station Admiralty. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

Next station (interchange): "The next station is Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Change for the North East line and Circle line. This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

For stations with interchanges: "This is Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Change here for the North East line and Circle line...Dhoby Ghaut Interchange. Please mind the gap"

For terminus: "Marina Bay...This train service terminates here, all passengers please alight...Marina Bay"

The Changi Airport announcements are nice but it sounds quite computerised / monotonous in my opinion. So far I like the NEL english only announcements the best.

[jpatokal]

Originally Posted by Leichestern

For mind the gap: "Please mind the gap"

But do you really need to mind the gap in Singapore? In London, the original home of gap minding, this makes sense because the platforms on the oldest lines are curved (!) and you could drop a baby elephant in some gaps... but in Singapore, you'd really have to make an effort to jam even a foot in there!

To denote line and direction: "This is a North South line train to Marina Bay"

So you think commuters are so stupid that they don't know what train they boarded? There aren't even any branching lines in Singapore, all you need to do is pick the right direction.

[ddes]

Personally, I don't worry too much for tourists. If they even chose to take the train at all, they'd have a mild understanding of their intended routing before boarding. It's the elderly that sometimes take things so complacent that information is available and they refuse to check it out. I'm not saying I hate old people but their attitude does stink sometimes and I sometimes won't blame "inconsiderate" people for not giving up their seat. If you are polite and smile more, it is easier to get things done.

I'm surprised that SBST hasn't improved it's English announcements, or get a better voice recorder. I find them to muffled, as if someone's saying something through a pillow.

[mrtfreak]

I actually prefer the SBST announcements to the SMRT ones. Except for the rather brief interchange ones. Those could do with another repeat of the options, if basic, once again just to remind commuters.

Eg. Next station, Serangoon interchange. Passengers may alight and change to the Circle Line.

Serangoon interchange. Change here for the Circle Line. Serangoon interchange.