UPDATES ON ONGOING RAIL PROJECTS
Mr Chee also provided updates on the West Coast Extension that LTA had been studying, which will link the upcoming Jurong Region Line (JRL) to the Circle Line (CCL).
The project will be executed in two phases: Phase 1, by the late 2030s, will extend the JRL from Pandan Reservoir station to connect with the Cross-Island Line (CRL) at West Coast station. Phase 2, by the early 2040s, will further extend the JRL from West Coast station to Kent Ridge station, connecting it to the CCL.
Once completed, the extension could cut travel times by up to 20 minutes for commuters in the west heading towards the city centre, said Mr Chee.
“The West Coast Extension will also enhance the overall resilience of our rail network, by providing an alternative via the CRL, and to the city centre via CCL,” he added.
Additional details, including station locations, will be announced at a later stage.
New stations or lines will be added every year till the end of this decade, said Mr Chee.
Hume station on the Downtown Line (DTL) opened last month.
Phase 2 of the CRL – comprising Turf City, King Albert Park, Maju, Clementi, West Coast and Jurong Lake District stations – will break ground in the first half of this year, said LTA in its statement.
CCL stage 6, which will close the circle between Marina Bay and Harbourfront stations via three new stations – Keppel, Cantonment and Prince Edward Road – is on track to be completed in the first half of 2026.
Three new stations as part of the Thomson-East Coast Line stage 5 and the DTL 3 extension – Bedok South, Xilin and Sungei Bedok – are slated to open in the second half of 2026.
JRL stage 1 is on track to open in 2027, followed by the next two stages in 2028 and 2029.
From 2030, the CRL will progressively open, connecting the eastern, western, and north-east regions.
“Rail projects are major investments … They require careful planning, taking into consideration current and future land-use needs, engineering feasibility, and potential environmental impact,” said Mr Chee.
“It also requires political stability, as well as a strong government which can plan long-term, and have the ability and resources to turn these plans into reality, because the plans will span multiple terms of government.”
