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Singapore

11 MRT stations along Thomson-East Coast Line on track to open by end of the year: LTA

The TEL stations, which run from Stevens to Gardens by the Bay, include Orchard, Great World and Maxwell.

11 MRT stations along Thomson-East Coast Line on track to open by end of the year: LTA

The Orchard station along the Thomson-East Coast Line. (Photo: Facebook/LTA)

SINGAPORE: Eleven new stations along the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL), including Orchard, Great World and Maxwell, are on track to open to the public by the end of the year.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said it officially handed over the stations to transport operator SMRT on Wednesday (Aug 17).

"This milestone marks the completion of all civil and structural works, as well as our systems integration and testing activities, for our TEL3," LTA said in a Facebook post. 

"With the handover, SMRT will carry out operational testing over the next few months to prepare 11 of the stations for welcoming commuters for passenger service by the end of this year."

The 11 stations, which come under stage 3 of the TEL, run from Stevens to Gardens by the Bay. Authorities previously said passenger service is expected to start in the second half of the year.

LTA said commuters taking the MRT directly from Springleaf to Great World City, for instance, can save more than 40 per cent in travel time compared to a 60-minute journey by bus and train.

A map of the three Thomson-East Coast Line phases. (Image: Facebook/LTA)

Stage 2 of line, comprising six stations from Springleaf to Caldecott, started passenger service in August 2021, adding to the three stations in Woodlands that opened in 2020.

The entire TEL – comprising 32 stations with eight interchange stations – was initially expected to be fully operational in 2024. The MRT line stretches to the eastern part of Singapore, including Bayshore, Siglap and Marine Parade.

However, the timeline for completion had been pushed back.

The opening of stage 2, for instance, was delayed twice - first due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The second delay came after the Land Transport Authority conducted a system review following a five-hour disruption on the line in December 2020 due to a signalling fault. 

Once the line is fully completed, more than 240,000 households will be within a 10-minute walk from a TEL station, said Transport Minister S Iswaran in a Facebook post on Wednesday.

"Over the next few months, SMRT will carry out further tests, to ensure that all systems are operationally ready for service by end of this year," he added.

Source: CNA/ic(gs)

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