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SINGAPORE: The Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) link moved one step closer to reality when work began on the rail link’s Singapore station on Friday (January 22).
The RTS Link Woodlands North station would be built underground to a maximum depth of 28m, with an underground link to the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) building, the Land Transportation Authority (LTA) said.
Together, the facilities will be about 10 times the size of a typical MRT station, LTA said.
They will be connected via an underground lobby to the existing Woodlands North station on the Thomson-East Coast MRT line.
The RTS Link tunnels will connect to a viaduct that runs 25m over the Johor Strait, connecting Woodlands North Station with Bukit Chagar Station in Johor Bahru.
Artist’s impression of the RTS Link viaduct. (Image: Land Transportation Authority)
The project was originally scheduled for completion in 2024, and the governments of Malaysia and Singapore signed a bilateral agreement to build the link in 2018.
However, the project was suspended several times after the Pakatan Harapan government took power in Malaysia that same year.
The project officially resumed in July last year, with a bilateral ceremony to commemorate the occasion held at the Calzada. Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his Malaysian counterpart Muhyiddin Yassin were in attendance.
Several changes were made to the initial plans, including that the RTS Link would use light rail transit (LRT), rather than share trains and other systems with the TEL.
In November, the Japanese company Penta-Ocean Construction received a contract for S $ 932.8 million to build the Woodlands North station, tunnels and CIQ building in Singapore.
A second civil contract for the viaduct is expected to be awarded in the first quarter of this year.
Malaysia began construction work on the rail link, which will replace the existing KTM shuttle train service, in November last year.
The project is estimated to cost RM10 billion (S $ 3.25 billion), with Singapore bearing 61 percent of the cost.
“ATTRACTIVE ALTERNATIVE”
At a groundbreaking ceremony for the upcoming Woodlands station, Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung said the 4 km link would offer significant economic and social benefits.
He expressed confidence that the project will be completed on time, by the end of 2026.
Ong said the RTS Link would offer an “attractive alternative” to the Causeway, which, prior to the COVID-19 crisis, was one of the busiest land border crossings in the world, with more than 300,000 daily crossings.
Singapore’s Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung (second from right) attended the opening ceremony of the RTS Johor Bahru-Singapore link on January 22, 2021 (Photo: Zhaki Abdullah)
“With a capacity of up to 10,000 travelers per hour per direction, the RTS Link can potentially move thousands of motorcycles and cars off the Road, while providing a faster and more comfortable ride,” he said.
CIQ’s facilities for both countries would also be located at Woodlands North and Bukit Chagar stations, which means that travelers can clear immigration for both countries at the point of departure, without having to do it again upon arrival, he noted.
The TEL expansion would connect RTS Link to the city center and other parts of the island, Ong said, adding that “eventually” there would be a transportation hub connected to Woodlands North RTS Link and TEL stations.
“NEW BUZZ”
Such transport connections would support plans to transform Woodlands into a “key growth center” in northern Singapore, similar to Tampines in the east and Jurong in the west, he said.
Woodlands Regional Center would have 700,000m2 of new commercial space and more than 100ha of land to develop, he added.
Artist’s impression of RTS Link Woodlands North Station (Entrance A). (Image: Land Transportation Authority)
“For years to come, Woodlands will be revamped, revitalized and rejuvenated. There will be a new buzz here … and the RTS Link, when operational, will serve as a key gateway to all of these exciting developments,” said Mr. Ong .
Ground conditions for the new station are expected to be challenging due to the presence of granite, part of the Bukit Timah Formation, the LTA said.
As such, the construction would involve the use of high-capacity drills, extended piling work and rock demolition during excavation work, he explained.
“As construction activities will be carried out near an operating MRT station and active utilities, these activities will be carefully managed to minimize the impact to the general public and ensure the structural safety of the surrounding infrastructure,” the LTA said.
