The Land Transport Authority (LTA) is seeking expertise to assess the condition of our rail system. The move came after the system is still bugged by glitches despite continued efforts. The authority has called for two tenders - one to invite parties to analyse the health of the operating system, and another to assess the condition of the infrastructure.

Speaking to The Straits Times, an LTA spokesman explained that the move is part of "continuous efforts to ensure the safety and reliability of rail services".

"The assessment builds on the studies that LTA conducted two years ago," she added.

In 2013, the authority conducted an assessment of the North-South and East-West lines' maintenance regimen. A separate study was also done to assess the condition of the North-East Line and Sengkang-Punggol LRT.

The check was widely accepted as the number of major breakdowns - those lasting more than half an hour - hit a four-year high of 12 last year.

Veteran Transport Consultant Bruno Wildermuth told the local papers that the rail system requires an indepedent assessment from a well established firm with the expertise to do so.

According to the LTA, 73 percent of delays lasting more than five minutes last year were caused by train and signalling faults - down from 79 percent in 2011. Power supply and track problems accounted for 19 percent of delays, up from 18 percent in 2011.

But external causes - such as poor weather and track intrusions - jumped from three percent in 2011 to eight percent last year.

The network health check could also help operators understand why certain stretches are problematic.

For instance, both SMRT and the LTA are baffled as to why the Kranji-Yew Tee stretch is the most problematic section of the North-South Line. So far this year, there have been seven breakdowns arising from faults there, lasting between five minutes and nearly five hours.

Mr William Lee, an Adviser to the National University of Singapore's engineering faculty, suggested a single train model should be used instead of the current four. This is to improve cost efficiency and technical expertise.