CRL3 - Contracts CR3016, CR3018 & CR3019

22 June 2025 - A soil investigation rig for contract CR3016 near Jurong Pier station.

During the groundbreaking ceremony held for the Cross Island Line (CRL)'s phase 2 the Acting Minister for Transport, Mr. Jeffrey Siow, also alluded to the fact that studies on phase 3 of the line were nearly completed, with a potential announcement by year's end. You may watch his full speech here. Corresponding to his comments, we have also noted an uptick in the amount of advanced works that have been taking place along the alignment of this phase - notably pertaining to contracts CR3016, CR3018 & CR3019.

Soil Investigation: Maju

The second stage of soil investigation works have commenced on phase 2 of the Cross Island Line (CRL). This involves further testing of areas identified during the first stage in order to obtain a more accurate understanding of the soil consistency. Contact C1066 was awarded by the Land Transport Authority on 12 December 2018 to Kwang Sing Engineering Pte Ltd. The company has previously conducted soil investigation work for portions of phase 1 of the CRL. This contract is due for completion by 24 October 2021.

Contract C1066 detail.

One of the first areas where soil investigation works under this contract has been spotted is opposite Maju camp along Clementi Road. Currently, two soil investigation rigs are located in the forested area.

Soil Investigation: Serangoon North

The final location of noted soil investigation activities is at Serangoon North. Intense works have been conducted in 2018 along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 stretching to Hougang Avenue 2, where the line is likely to swing north under Hougang Avenue 8.

Soil investigation borehole spread showing locations at Serangoon North/Hougang West in relation to Tavistock as of
07 January 2018.

Soil Investigation: Tavistock / Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2

We will soon be concluding our coverage of soil investigations along the Cross Island Line East (CRLe) section. However, till then, there are another 2 sites at which we have noted intense soil investigation works. One of these is at a location which we're referring to as Tavistock, which is located near Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2 and north of Serangoon Gardens.

Spread of soil investigations at Tavistock/Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2 as of 07.01.2019.

Soil Investigation: Sin Ming / Bright Hill

To start off, we'd like to wish all our readers a Happy New Year and may 2019 hold the best in store for you. Likewise, to start the year off on a good note, we'll be looking soil investigation works at the Cross Island Line's (CRL) eastern phase's western terminus - Bright Hill station on the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL).

Soil Investigation: Ang Mo Kio (West) / Teck Ghee

With soil investigation works continuing in the lead up to the confirmation of the Cross Island Line's (CRL) alignment, we've noticed more works on the western side of Ang Mo Kio. As these boreholes are located along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6, which is also the corridor for the North South Expressway (NSE), a bit more time was taken to ensure that the boreholes found were matched to contracts for the CRL.

Spread of soil investigation boreholes along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 as of September 2018.

Soil Investigation: Tampines North

Spread of soil investigation boreholes around Tampines North as of 07 August 2018.

As far back as 2016, boreholes have been spotted in the vicinity of Tampines North area. Additional boreholes have also been noted around Tampines Industrial Avenue 2 with some as recently as May 2018. It is expected that the line will cut through the existing Paya Lebar Air Base to connect to the Defu area which was covered in our previous post.

Soil Investigation: Defu

Soil investigation spread at the area around Defu as of 05 August 2018.

A stretch of yet to be developed land along Tampines Road is zoned to be an industrial area in the future. This extends the Defu industrial area further north, across Sungei Serangoon from Hougang New Town. A string of soil investigations have been noted from as far back as 2017 along the stretch of road leading from Hougang towards the Paya Lebar Air Base. This is anticipated as the Cross Island Line runs eastwards towards Tampines North and eventually Changi Airport.

Soil Investigation: Loyang

The spread of boreholes in the Loyang area as noted on 1 July 2017 & updated with new rigs seen, as contributed
by Peter48.

A number of boreholes and soil investigation rigs were spotted along Loyang Avenue in 2017. These stretch from the intersection with Pasir Ris Drive 3 near the Loyang Bus depot all the way to the SIA Engineering compound. Some of the boreholes were noted to date back to 2016.

Update: New images thanks to contribution & permission from Peter48.

Soil Investigation: Gul Circle

Spread of soil investigation boreholes along Gul Circle as of 18 June 2018.

Near the newly opened Gul Circle station, a string of soil investigation boreholes line the road after which the MRT station along the East West Line obtained its name. The boreholes seem to have largely been dug over several months in 2017 stretching from one end of Gul Circle near Tuas Road all the way to the other end near Benoi Road.

Soil Investigation: Hougang

The spread of soil investigation boreholes around Hougang as of 6 June 2018.

Since 2016, Soil Investigations have been noted around different areas of Hougang. These stretch from along the border with Defu at Hougang Avenue 7 and reach to Hougang Avenue 2 at the junction with Yio Chu Kang Road.

Soil Investigations: King Albert Park

The spread of soil investigation borehole locations as of 4 June 2018.

Following Soil Investigations in Clementi from 2016, we have also noticed Soil Investigation rigs around King Albert Park station in 2017. The rigs took turns at drilling along various points along Blackmore Road through August & September 2017.

Soil Investigation: Clementi

The spread of Soil Investigations within Clementi as of 02 June 2018. The dates represent the dates the boreholes
and/or Soil Investigation works were seen and/or officially completed.

As work on the eastern leg of the Cross Island Line (CRL) ramps up, Soil Investigations along the western leg begins to show patterns of study. As can be observed within Clementi over the period of approximately 2 years, a number of boreholes have surfaced showing a possible route alignment option that has been pursued for further study.

Soil Investigation: Ang Mo Kio (East)

Soil Investigation rig seen along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8. 04 June 2017.

If you happened to pass by Ang Mo Kio as of late you would have noticed intense soil investigation works going on around the vicinity of the existing MRT station and stretching along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3. These are for the upcoming Cross Island Line (CRL) which will run under Avenue 3.

Soil Investigation: Pasir Ris

A map showing the corridor of the Cross Island Line (CRL).
Source: LTA

Besides serving Punggol, the Cross Island Line (CRL) will also serve Pasir Ris. It is envisaged that Pasir Ris would see up to 3 new MRT stations serving the various neighbourhoods with new rail links. In December 2016 we noted several boreholes around Pasir Ris which are potentially related to the CRL pre-construction works. For the purpose of identifying the districts within Pasir Ris, we will refer to the sections as Elias, Pasir Ris Central and Pasir Ris East.

Soil Investigation: Punggol Central

26 August 2016 - Borehold along Punggol Central for LTA

As part of the Cross Island Line (CRL), it is understood that a spur line branching from Pasir Ris will run to Punggol station where provisions have been made for a future line to integrate. In the book launched by LTA, titled Getting There: The story of the North East Line, it was noted that a 40 metre by 40 metre box was constructed together with the North East Line station box in anticipation of a future North Shore Line. This station box is most likely to be used on the Punggol spur of the CRL. Getting There: The story of the North East Line can be borrowed from the National Library Board. Do check out our post on Punggol station, its provisions and future modifications for interchange with the CRL.