Cross Island MRT line

Cross Island Line
The Cross Island Line is coloured in Lime
Overview
Native name	Laluan MRT Rentas Pulau 跨岛地铁线 குறுக்குத் தீவு ரயில் பாதை
Status	Under construction (Stage 1) Planned (Punggol Extension) Under planning (Stage 2)
Owner	Land Transport Authority
Locale	Singapore
Termini	Aviation Park Pasir Ris Bright Hill Punggol
Stations	12 (Stage 1) 3 (Punggol extension) 27 (estimated; overall)
Service
Type	Rapid transit
System	Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore)
Operator(s)	TBA
Depot(s)	Changi East
History
Planned opening	2030 (Stage 1) 2030s (other stages) 2032 (Punggol extension) 2040 (extension to Changi Airport T5)
Technical
Line length	29 km (18 mi) (Stage 1) 7.3 km (4.5 mi) (Punggol extension) 58 km (36 mi) (Total approximate)
Character	Fully underground
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Route map Legend future extension to Changi Airport T5 Changi East Depot  CR2  Aviation Park  CR3  Loyang  CR4  Pasir Ris East Sungei Tampines  EW1  ■ East West MRT line to Tuas Link  CP1   CR5  Pasir Ris Sungei Api Api  CP2  Elias Tampines Expressway  CR6  Tampines North Kallang–Paya Lebar Expressway  CR7  Defu Sungei Serangoon  PE4  ■ Punggol LRT line East Loop  CP3  Riviera  PTC  ■ Punggol LRT line East Loop│West Loop  NE17  ■ North East MRT line to Punggol Coast  CP4  Punggol  NE14  ■ North East MRT line to HarbourFront  CR8  Hougang  CR9  Serangoon North  CR10  Tavistock Central Expressway  CR11  Ang Mo Kio  NS16  ■ North South MRT line to Jurong East│to Marina South Pier  CR12  Teck Ghee Kallang River  CR13  Bright Hill  TE7  ■ Thomson–East Coast MRT line to Woodlands North│to Caldecott future extension to Tuas This diagram: view talk

The Cross Island Line (CRL) is a future high capacity Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line in Singapore. The eighth MRT line, the CRL will run in the general east-west direction from Changi to Jurong Industrial Estate via Loyang, Pasir Ris, Hougang, Ang Mo Kio, Sin Ming, Bukit Timah, Clementi and the West Coast. From Pasir Ris, the line will branch off to Punggol.^[1] Coloured lime on official maps, the CRL will be at least 50 kilometres (31 mi) long, serving 30 over stations.^[2] It is the sixth to be completely automated and driverless.

Plans for the line were first announced in 2013. The CRL was planned to serve various key hubs including the Jurong Lake District and the Punggol Digital District, offering an alternative east-west connection to alleviate passenger load on the East West line. Despite calls by nature groups to divert the line away from the Central Catchment Nature Reserve (CCNR), the government decided to continue with the direct route in 2019. The alignment and stations for CRL1 were finalised in 2019, followed by the Punggol branch in 2020.

History[]

Announcement[]

The Cross Island Line was first announced by Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew on 17 January 2013. The line was planned to relieve congestion on the existing East West Line and slated to begin at Changi on Singapore's eastern coast, passing through the major eastern towns including Pasir Ris, Hougang and Ang Mo Kio. From this point, it would proceed further west toward Bukit Timah, Clementi and West Coast, before terminating in the Jurong Industrial Estate. A branch line was to connect the mainline to Punggol. The line was planned to be 50km long and open in 2030.^[3][4] Studies on the Cross Island Line began in May 2013.^[5]

Line alignment[]

Central catchment area in Singapore

Since its announcement, there has been controversy over the alignment of the line's Bukit Timah stretch crossing the Central Catchment Nature Reserve (CCNR) and MacRitchie Reservoir, which prompted the Nature Society Singapore to call the line's realignment. Environmental groups have urged the Government not to build the MRT line under the CCNR.^[6]

On 19 July 2013, the NSS put forward two proposed alternative alignments:^[7] a northern route that would run close to the Thomson–East Coast Line, heading west towards Mandai, Sungei Kadut and Gali Batu before terminating at Choa Chu Kang, and a southern route skirting the reserve along Lornie Road. Engineers noted the feasibility of constructing the line through the reserve without impacting the environment, though one said the decision "shouldn’t be just based on transport".^[8]

A tender to assess the environmental impact of the line was called on 24 February 2014 to facilitate civil works for the line.^[9] In July 2014, the LTA appointed Environmental Resources Management (S) Pte Ltd (ERM) to conduct the (EIA) for the section of the line around and through the nature reserve. The EIA was to be conducted in two phases, with the first studying the ecosystem and physical conditions along both the straight and skirting alignments, as well as assessing how construction and operation of the line would affect the CCNR.^[10] The Phase 1 EIA report was released in February 2016.^[11][12]

Soil investigation works along the CCNR began in February 2017 and by October, was announced to be nearing completion by the end of the year.^[6] On 20 March 2018, the LTA declared that the findings on the environmental impact of drilling and other initial works would be completed later that year.^[13] The Phase 2 EIA report was released in September 2019.^[14] On 4 December 2019, the Ministry of Transport confirmed that the direct route underneath the CCNR had been chosen. The construction cost is expected to be $2 billion lower than the alternative alignments.^[15]

Phase 1[]

On 25 January 2019, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan announced the alignment of CRL Phase 1. This segment of the line, spanning 29 kilometres (18 mi), consists of 12 stations from Aviation Park station to Bright Hill station. A new 57-hectare Changi East Depot was to be built to serve the line. CRL Phase 1 was expected to be completed in 2029.^[16][17][18] On 10 March 2020, a branch line from Pasir Ris station to Punggol station was announced.The 7.3-kilometre (4.5 mi) Punggol extension, consisting of four stations between this station and Punggol, was expected to be completed in 2031.^[19][20] However, the restrictions imposed on construction works due to the COVID-19 pandemic has led to delays and the completion dates for CRL1 and CRLe were pushed by one year to 2030 and 2032 respectively.^[21]

Subsequent phases[]

In December 2021, as part of a virtual exhibition by the LTA, a future system map depicted a series of unnamed stations on the western half of the CRL.^[22] The map also showed the western half of the line interchanging with existing stations including King Albert Park, Clementi and Jurong Pier. The line was shown to terminate at Gul Circle station. The map, along with the virtual exhibition, has since been offline. The LTA explained that the route was a "conceptual alignment" yet to be finalised, with the interchange stations being tentative.^[23]

Network and operations[]

Route and services[]

Initially targeted to be completed by 2030, the Cross Island Line will offer east–west commuters an alternative to the existing East West line and Downtown Line. It will also connect to all the other major lines to serve as a key transfer line, complementing the role already fulfilled by the orbital Circle Line.^[24]

In addition to the previously announced alignment of the Cross Island Line, the LTA is studying an extension to link the line to the future Changi Airport Terminal 5.^[25][26]

It was briefly considered to implement an express service for the CRL.^[27] However, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan announced in 2018 that express services were considered not feasible, citing the need to dedicate more infrastructure for extra tracks and additional signalling systems.^[28]

Stations[]

Geographically accurate map of the Cross Island MRT line.

Notes: Names stated are working names, except for stations that are already opened.

Legend

Elevated	Line terminus	Transfer outside paid area
Ground-level	Wheelchair accessible	Bus interchange
Underground	Civil Defence Shelter	Other transportation modes

List

Station code	Station name	Images	Interchange; Adjacent transportation	Opening	Cost
Stage 1 (under construction, to be ready by 2030)
CR2	Aviation Park	Does not appear	Changi Ferry Terminal	2030; 8 years' time	TBA
					S$356 million[29][a]
CR3	Loyang	Does not appear	—
					S$748 million[30]
CR4	Pasir Ris East	Does not appear			TBA
CR5   CP1  EW1	Pasir Ris	Does not appear	CRL Punggol Extension  (2032)   East West Line  ―  Pasir Ris		S$980 million[31]
CR6	Tampines North	Does not appear	Tampines North		TBA
CR7	Defu	Does not appear	—
CR8  NE14	Hougang	Does not appear	North East Line  ―  Hougang Central		S$604 million[32]
CR9	Serangoon North	Does not appear	—		TBA
CR10	Tavistock	Does not appear
CR11  NS16	Ang Mo Kio	Does not appear	North South Line  ―  Ang Mo Kio		S$644 million[33]
CR12	Teck Ghee	Does not appear	—		S$615.9 million[34]
CR13  TE7	Bright Hill	Does not appear	Thomson–East Coast Line		TBA
Punggol Extension (planned, to be ready by 2032)[35]
CP1   CR5  EW1	Pasir Ris	Does not appear	Cross Island Line    East West Line  ―  Pasir Ris	2032; 10 years' time	TBA
CP2	Elias	Does not appear	—
CP3 – PE4	Riviera	Does not appear	PGLRT East Loop
CP4  NE17  PTC	Punggol	Does not appear	North East Line    Punggol LRT  ―  Punggol

The Cross Island Line's numbering scheme reserves the station code 'CR1' for a future extension towards Changi Airport.^[36][1]

Depots[]

Number	Depot name; Lines	Location	Images	Line-specific stabling capacity	Cost	Opening
1	Changi East	Changi	Does not appear	70 trains	S$1.05 billion	2030; 8 years' time
2	TBA	Tuas	Does not appear	TBA

References[]

External links[]

• Cross Island Line