Next phase of Circle Line to open on Apr 17
SINGAPORE: The second phase of the Circle Line will open
to passengers on April 17. The 11-station stretch, from Bartley to
Dhoby Ghaut stations, will start operations almost a year after the
first five stations were opened to the public last May.
With this new opening, about half the Circle Line or about 16
stations will connect commuters to places like the new Sports Hub
through Stadium Station, to Suntec via Promenade Station and the
museums via Bras Basah Station.
Transport Minister Raymond Lim said: "This is a significant thing
for us because now you have these direct connections. So if you are
on the eastern side, north-eastern side, you have a direct line
that connects you instead of having to go to the city
centre."
So a commuter going from, say, interchange station Paya Lebar to
Bishan can shave off about 18 minutes or half his travelling time,
said the Land Transport Authority. Commuters can bypass the busy
City Hall and Raffles Place stations.
Building the Paya Lebar Station was not easy. One of the challenges
that engineers faced in building this interchange station was that
they had to connect an underground line to an existing above ground
station.
For commuters who also had to endure congestion during road
diversions, the opening has been welcomed.
Said one man in the street: "The transportation was very bad and
there used to have jams all over and time taken from one place to
another was very bad. Now of course, there are a lot of
changes."
"It saves time, like when we are rushing to meet friends and
family, it will be much more better," said another commuter.
Transport authorities now expect the Circle Line ridership to spike
to about 200,000 daily.
Also operating will be the station that caused a delay to the
opening of the Circle Line when the site at Nicoll Highway
collapsed.
Sim Wee Meng, group director, Rail, Land Transport Authority, said:
"Nicoll Highway, we have built at the new site which is 100 metres
away from existing site. It's now completed and will open as part
of Circle Line 1 & 2."
As for the possibility of bus rationalisation, Mr Lim said: "The
LTA will have to work with the operators to see whether they need
to streamline any of the services in order to feed into the Circle
Line."
The final phase of the Circle Line, which will link up the western
parts of Singapore to the line with stops in places like Botanic
Gardens and Holland Village, is expected to be ready next year. -
CNA/vm
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1033048/1/.html
Circle Line from Bartley to Dhoby Ghaut to Open 17
April
1. The second phase of the
Circle Line (CCL) from Bartley to Dhoby Ghaut will open for
passenger service on 17 April 2010 (Saturday).
2. The 11-kilometre long
stretch comprising 11 stations - Tai Seng, MacPherson, Paya Lebar,
Dakota, Mountbatten, Stadium, Nicoll Highway, Promenade, Esplanade,
Bras Basah and Dhoby Ghaut - will start operations almost a year
after the five CCL stations from Marymount to Bartley opened to the
public last May.
3. About 200,000 people are
expected to use the 16 stations from Dhoby Ghaut to Marymount every
day.
Enhanced Connectivity
and Greater Travel Time Saving with CCL
4. The orbital CCL will
enhance connectivity with the existing MRT lines and provide
significant travel time savings for commuters. Please refer to
Annex
A for several examples of travel time savings.
5. With Paya Lebar Interchange
Station joining CCL to the existing East-West Line, passengers
travelling from the eastern parts of Singapore can now bypass the
busy City Hall and Raffles Place interchanges to get to the city
and northern parts of Singapore. The same holds true for those
travelling from the north and north-east commuting to the city and
the eastern part of the island.
6. The new stations are
located at the doorsteps of various entertainment and recreational
facilities, so commuters can now travel straight to these
destinations with ease. For examples, the arts enthusiasts can
alight at Bras Basah Station to visit the Singapore Art Museum and
the National Museum of Singapore; sports fans can get off at
Stadium Station to enjoy the surrounding sports, entertainment and
leisure facilities at Singapore Indoor Stadium, Arina Stadium
Waterfront and Leisure Park Kallang.
Residents and
Businesses Welcome New Line's Opening
7. Residents and business
owners along the new MRT line are eagerly waiting for the eleven
stations to open.
8. Ms Lily Teo, a 58-year-old
student care teacher who stays and works in Mountbatten, is
ecstatic about the impending opening of the new CCL segment. Ms Teo
is pursuing a part-time diploma at an educational institute in
Queenstown and currently takes the bus to connect to the East-West
Line to the school. "I have to rush like crazy every time I knock
off from work to go for my studies. With CCL, I can take my time
and still won't be late for classes!" said Ms Teo.
9. Mr Siow Kee Lin, 66,
operates a sundry shop at the Old Airport Road Market & Food
Centre and is thrilled that Dakota and Mountbatten Stations are
opening soon. "The new stations will bring more crowds for makan at
the food centre and to my shop," said Mr Siow.
LTA Launched CCL Fan
Page on Facebook
10. On 5 Jan 2010, the Land
Transport Authority launched the CCL Fan Page on Facebook to share
the progress of the CCL with netizens. Fans of the CCL Fan Page
will receive regular updates on CCL and are encouraged to post
their thoughts on the Line.
11. To date, more than 250
netizens have signed up as fans. To sign up as a fan and receive
updates on CCL, simply search "Circle Line, CCL" on
Facebook.
http://app.lta.gov.sg/corp_press_content.asp?start=kpt8zx9w8ik53wi33gr59p754348fsj35b9glldouy8ndlh7kb
Examples of Travel Time Savings with CCL:
http://www.lta.gov.sg/images/Travel%20Time%20Savings.pdf
Fact Sheet:
Paya Lebar
Station
http://www.lta.gov.sg/images/Paya%20Lebar%20Station.pdf
Stadium
Station
http://www.lta.gov.sg/images/Stadium%20Station.pdf
