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.

CRL - A snapshot in March 2024

Overview of CRL1 stations CR4 - CR13 as at March 2024.
Top (L - R): CR4 - Pasir Ris East, CR5/CP1 - Pasir Ris, CR7 - Defu
Middle (L - R): CR8 - Hougang, CR9 - Serangoon North, CR10 - Tavistock
Bottom (L - R): CR11 – Ang Mo Kio, CR12 - Teck Ghee, CR13 - Bright Hill

Overview of CPE & CRL2 stations CP2 - CP4 & CR14 - CR19 as at March 2024.
Top (L - R): CP2 - Elias, CP3 - Riviera, CP4 - Punggol
Middle (L - R): CR14 - Turf City, CR15 - King Albert Park, CR16 - Maju
Bottom (L - R): CR17 - Clementi, CR18 - West Coast, CR19 - Jurong Lake District

It's been a whirlwind first quarter of the year. We take the opportunity to check in on the progress of the various construction sites along the Cross Island Line (CRL)'s various phases in the month of March and provide a glimpse at the progress being made. Do check out the various projects after the jump.

CPE & CRL2 - year-end update 2023

 

The 9 station sites of CPE & CRL2 as of end-2023.

2023 was an eventful year for both the Cross Island Line (CRL)'s Punggol Extension (CPE) & Phase 2 (CRL2) sections with the ground breaking ceremony and contracts being awarded respectively. With the ground breaking ceremony taking place this year, work has began at all 3 station sites under the offshoot branch which connects the main CRL line at Pasir Ris with Punggol - a precursor to the long spoken about Northshore Line which would have eventually connected Punggol and Woodlands. Over at CRL2, contract awarded began, with 3 of the 9  civil contracts awarded through the year. All in all, 2023 has been exciting for the phase 2 stations.

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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CR2016 - Advanced works for CRL2

 

21 May 2023 - The beginning of hoarding along Clementi Road.

21 May 2023 - Hoarding along Clementi Road.

Recently if you've travelled along Clementi Road, especially around the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) / Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) stretch, you may have noticed green hoarding along the boundary of the road. Ever wondered what the hoarding is for? Could it be that works for the Cross Island Line (CRL) phase 2 are already beginning? Find out more after the jump.

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.