X-ray scans, body checks at selected MRT stations from April 1

[SINGAPORE] Enhanced security screening will be introduced at selected MRT stations from April 1.

Checks similar to those at airports, which include metal detector scans and x-ray scans, will be conducted at random, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said in a Facebook post on Wednesday (March 31).

The rollout comes after a six-month trial that ended in 2019.

The Straits Times understands that the enhanced screening took some time to implement due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The equipment will also be rotated periodically across MRT stations on all rail lines.

This works together with the Threat-Oriented Person Screening Integrated System (Topsis), a threat assessment programme under which more than 30,000 public transport personnel have been trained to keep a lookout for suspicious items, people and activities, LTA added.

In February 2018, Minister for Manpower and Second Minister for Home Affairs Josephine Teo announced this planned extension of Topsis from frontline staff at checkpoints to "inland locations which could be attractive terrorist targets" under the name Topsis 2.0.

These locations include critical infrastructure - such as power and water treatment plants - as well as buildings with high human traffic such as malls."The Topsis programme works hand in hand with the implementation of enhanced security measures at public transport nodes to deter possible threats", LTA said.

Members of the public can also flag out anything suspicious by reporting to public transport staff, calling the police or downloading the SGSecure app, it added.

According to a separate Facebook post by SMRT, the screening equipment will be rolled out from Thursday.

THE STRAITS TIMES