CRL2 Groundbreaking ceremony

7 July 2025 - A group photo with contractors of CRL2.

Today, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) held a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the official commencement of construction on phase 2 of the Cross Island Line (CRL). Connecting 6 stations over 15km of track, the section of line will see the expansion of Singapore's rail network reach areas in the west currently not well covered by the system. Notably, the future housing estate on the site of the former turf club will be served by the MRT and residents at West Coast will have a station to call their own. Also standing to benefit, students at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) and Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) will be served by the upcoming Maju station. Stations along this section of the line are Turf City, King Albert Park, Maju, Clementi, West Coast and Jurong Lake District. King Albert Park and Clementi stations will connect to the existing Downtown and East-West lines respectively, allowing convenient transfers for commuters.

Early works under the 9 contracts that make up phase 2 have already commenced, thus today's ceremony is more symbolic in nature. Some of the works that have begun include the demolition of existing structures at the project sites, utility diversions and construction of diaphragm walls for sections where excavation works will be required. The 9 contracts consist of 3 contracts for tunneling between stations and 6 contracts for the construction of stations, some which also include the construction of connecting tunnels.

A total of 11 tunnel boring machines (TBMs) will be required to complete tunneling works along this section of the line, one of which is already busy at work under contract CR202. TBM Jane, launched in May 2025, is a large diameter TBM that will construct the tunnels connecting Turf City station with Bright Hill station on phase 1 of the line. This tunnel will undercross the Central Catchment Nature Reserve (CCNR) without disturbing the surface, a decision that was not undertaken lightly when the line was first planned. Due to concerns from nature groups and other communities, studies were initiated to weigh the benefits of pursuing the direct route over an alternative route avoiding the CCNR entirely. Ultimately, following the studies conducted, the direct route through the CCNR was selected, albeit with some adjustments to the work areas to mitigate impact to the flora and fauna found within the reserve.

In addition to the symbolic start of construction along the second phase, the Minister for Transport - Mr. Jeffrey Siow - also officiated the opening of the phase's Project Information Centre (PIC). Located in Clementi and next to the project site, the PIC serves to allow the community to learn more about the project and its development. On display is a model of the upcoming Clementi station and exhibits of the contracts under this phase of the line. Similar PICs exist in Hougang for Phase 1 of the line and in Punggol for the Punggol extension section.

7 July 2025 - Opening plaque

The PIC will be open to the public from 8 July 2025. Operating hours will be 9.00am to 5.00pm, Monday to Friday. Walk-ins are allowed, but booking an appointment through a link to be released is encouraged.

We look forward to the continued progress along CRL2 with the phase officially underway. May the project be completed safely & in a timely manner.

CR203 - New Turf City station renders

 

Layout of Turf City station and its exits.
Source: STEC

Contract CR203 for the construction of Turf City station was one of the last to be awarded for the second phase of the Cross Island Line (CRL). Since the contract's award in May 2024, contractor Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co (STEC) has since uploaded some images of the station onto its website, including new renders of the station's exterior & interior.

CR203 - Contract for Turf City station awarded

One of the station's exits.
Image: LTA

 Today, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced the award of contract CR203 for the design & construction of Turf City station and associated tunnels connecting to King Albert Park station. The contract was won by a joint venture between Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co (STEC) & Obayashi Corporation. The joint venture had also previously won adjacent contract CR202 for the construction of a large diameter, single bored tunnel underneath the Central Catchment Nature Reserve that connects Turf City station to Bright Hill station under phase 1 of the line.

CRL2 - Release of contract CR203 for Turf City

 

24 July 2023 - Tender for contract CR203
Source: LTA

Today, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) floated the tender for contract CR203. This contract involves the construction of Turf City station and associated tunnels connecting to King Albert Park station in neighbouring contract CR205. Contract CR203 is the sixth contract floated for tender under the Cross Island Line's (CRL) phase 2 which continues the line from Bright Hill to Jurong Lake District. CRL2 is due to commence operations in 2032.

To date, of the contracts floated for tenders, 1 has been awarded, 3 have been closed for evaluation of tender bids & 2 remain open. We've done up a table for ease of reference.

Contract Number	Status	Bidders
CR202	Awarded	Obayashi – STEC JV (Successful)
CR203 (Turf City)	Open	Pending – closing 22 Dec 2023
CR205 (King Albert Park)	Closed for evaluation	1. China Communications Construction Co. Ltd 2. Gammon Construction & Engineering Pte Ltd 3. Lum Chang Building Contractors Pte Ltd 4. Ssangyong Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd
CR206 (Maju)	Open	Pending – closing 31 July 2023
CR208 (Clementi)	Closed for evaluation	1. CES_SDC Pte Ltd 2. China Communications Construction Co. Ltd 3. Daelim Engineering & Construction Co Ltd. 4. Sato Kogyo (S) Pte Ltd
CR209 (West Coast)	Closed for evaluation	1. CES_SDC Pte Ltd 2. China Jingye Engineering Corporation Ltd 3. China Railway First Group Co. Ltd 4. Gamuda Berhad 5. Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co Pte Ltd (STEC)

With the latest tender floated, the contracts for 5 of the 6 stations along CRL2 have been successfully tendered. The remaining contract for Jurong Lake District station has yet to be floated, along with 2 other contracts - likely to be contracts for tunneling works. The remaining contracts are numbered CR207, CR210 & CR211.

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Turf City pre-construction 2022

 

31 December 2022 - A view of the Turf City Grandstand & field in front.

The second phase of the Cross Island Line (CRL) was announced in September to much anticipation. Since then, things have quieted down a little as work swings into the documentation phase with preparation works for contract tendering. As with previous projects that we covered, we took this opportunity to visit the sites of the CRL2 stations before all the major construction works commence. This batch of pictures were taken in December 2022 as part of our year-end wrap up for 2022. Between now and the commencement of construction, we are sure to visit the site again and will update with another batch of photos in due time.

CRL2 - Some renders & EIS reports

 

A render of an exit of Turf City station.
Source: LTA

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has recently published the Environmental Impact Study (EIS) reports on their website. Within the reports were a few renders of Turf City and King Albert Park stations. Other details were also unveiled within the reports, such as the stations at Maju & Turf City potentially having cripple sidings integrated into the stations and a future knock out panel being provisioned for a "paid link" at Maju station. A heritage study report by the Urban Redevelopment Authority did not yield any other results.

CRL2 - The next steps

Previously we had posted about the stages leading up to a rapid transit line's announcement to give everyone an idea of the steps leading up to the line's announcement & subsequent construction. With the official unveiling of the station locations for phase 2 of the Cross Island Line (CRL) on Tuesday, we are now well within the announcement & tendering phase. Albeit some preparatory works are remaining and will be ongoing till the construction phase commences later.

CRL2 Announced

 

20 September 2022 - Photo taking at the ministerial visit to the East Coast depot.

CHANGI SOUTH, SINGAPORE - On 20th September, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) unveiled the second phase of the hotly anticipated Cross Island Line (CRL). CRL2 will span 15km, connecting to the first phase at Bright Hill and ending at the Jurong Lake District. Along the way, the line crosses with the Downtown Line (DTL) & East-West Line (EWL), offering commuters an alternative route between the east and west.

CRL2 - What's next?

Overview of the stages in the development of a Rapid Transit System.

With works on phase 1 of the Cross Island Line (CRL) mostly under way, the next hotly anticipated development for the line will be the announcement of station locations along the phase 2 section. Join us as we explore some of the key milestones to hit before construction works can commence.

CRL2 - Speculated Station Locations

A map of the expected phase 2 of the Cross Island Line. Own production.

As it has been more than 2 years since Cross Island Line (CRL) Punggol Extension was announced, we are expecting news of the next phase of the line to be announced this year. With an expected completion date of 2032, we foresee tenders for advanced contracts to be published soon. Earlier in June, pre-qualifications for 8 contracts for the second phase of the line were called for.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) Long-Term Plan.
Source: URA

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) also published the latest Long-Term Plan in June 2022 which showed the notional full alignment of the CRL. By overlaying the long-term plan map over a geographic map, we were able to collaborate the supporting data and information with the latest sightings of soil investigation works to compile a list of probable station locations for the CRL2 section. This section of the CRL will continue from the tunnel section directly crossing below the Central Catchment Nature Reserve (CCNR), and ends at Jurong Lake District.

We expect that there will be a total of 6 stations in this section, which stretches over 15km consisting of 5km below the CCNR, and 10km of tunnels between the 6 stations.

Geographical map of our expected CRL2 stations & alignment based on URA's long term plan.

CRL2 - Pre-qualification begins

 

Screen capture of pre-qualification for CRL2 contracts

Pre-qualification for 8 contracts along the Cross Island Line (CRL) phase 2 has begun. Details of the pre-qualification for the contracts was released on 31 May 2022. With an expected closure date of 28 June 2022, it is highly likely that the stations along this section of the line will be officially announced this year.

LTA Virtual Exhibition - CRL2, CRL3 & CR01 stations

Screenshot from LTA's Virtual Tour
Source: LTA

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) on 1 December 2021 launched its virtual exhibition - titled Connecting People, Places & Possibilities. The exhibition journeys through Singapore's land transport milestones, highlighting key decisions made in the journey thus far.

Next station - Turf City

Last week the Land Transport Authority (LTA) released the Phase 2 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report for the route of the Cross Island Line (CRL) through the central catchment nature reserve (CCNR). The report detailed the construction methods and locations of the construction sites for two alignment options through and around the nature reserve.

Part of the report includes graphical representation of the route alignment options. Directions on either end of the alignment diagrams show the approximate locations of the stations. In the eastward direction "To Sin Ming" is shown, where Bright Hill station is located. Towards the west, "To Turf City" is used. This should correlate to a station being built in the vicinity of the former Turf Club in Bukit Timah.

Alignment option 1 through the CCNR.
Source: LTA EIA

Alignment option 2 around the CCNR.
Source: LTA EIA

CRL2 - Advanced Engineering studies

Today the Land Transport Authority has released the tenders for the advanced engineering studies for the Cross Island Line (CRL) phase 2. Both package A and package B are for the mainline and do not appear to include the advanced engineering for the CRL's western depot at Raffles Country Club.

Screenshot of tenders for Advanced Engineering studies for CRL2

Both contracts are expected to be delivered by 30 September 2022. This is indicative that the announcement of stations along stage 2 of the line will only be announced after completion of these contracts. We have since checked similar contracts for CRL1 and noted that the stations were announced approximately 11 months prior to the completion of the contracts. With this, it can be expected that the CRL2 stations may be announced around end-2021 or in 2022 itself.