Circle MRT Line
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This article or section contains information about a planned or expected public transportation infrastructure. It may contain information of a speculative nature and the content may change dramatically as the construction and/or completion of the infrastructure approaches, and more information becomes available. |
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The Circle Line (CCL) is the fourth Mass Rapid Transit line and currently under construction in Singapore. The line will be 33.3 km long with 29 stations, and will be operated by SMRT Corporation. Like the North East Line, it will be driverless, fully automatic and entirely underground.
As the name implies, it will be an orbital line linking all radial lines leading to the city, and also will cover many parts of the Central Area. Transfer to the North South Line will be provided at Bishan and Dhoby Ghaut stations, East West Line at Paya Lebar and Buona Vista stations, and North East Line at Dhoby Ghaut, Serangoon and HarbourFront stations.
The Circle MRT Line will also include a Downtown Extension (DTE) which is technically part of the line (however, provisions are planned to remove the Downtown Extension and merge with the Eastern Region and the Bukit Timah lines to form the Downtown Line, see MRT), although it is a forked branch. This is similar to the circumstances surrounding the branched line from Tanah Merah and Changi Airport which is technically part of the East West Line.
As a medium capacity line, each Circle Line trains will only have three cars instead of the six-car configuration as seen on all other lines. The rolling stock will consist of forty trains manufactured by Alstom. Half a million people are expected to use the Circle Line each day.
Despite the name, the Circle Line is not actually a full circle, as there will be no through service on the section between Harbourfront and Dhoby Ghaut (or, after the DTE, Chinatown), and passengers will need to transfer onto the North-East Line instead. A "Stage 6" that would complete the circle, perhaps passing through the Marina District, has been mooted but is not officially planned.
Like the North East Line, the Circle Line will also feature the Art in Transit programme. It will consist of artwork that is integrated into station designs as well as Art Seats.
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[edit] History
Plans for the Circle Line date back to the 1980s. Then Minister for Communications and Information Dr Yeo Ning Hong stated that such a system "would be feasible when the population reaches four million".
In the 1990s, the Circle Line was first known as the Marina Line. The Marina Line was initially planned as a 12-station underground line, starting from Chinatown and Dhoby Ghaut to the National Stadium. However, the Chinatown leg was later truncated and was reduced to 6 stations up to Stadium station. On the other hand, a further extension towards Upper Paya Lebar was added. Eventually, the Marina line ended up as an inner circular line. The Marina Line was originally slated for completion in 2006.
Circle Line stations that were a part of the original Marina Line plans include Dhoby Ghaut, Bras Basah, Esplanade, Promenade, Nicoll Highway and Stadium.
[edit] Nicoll Highway collapse
On April 20, 2004, a section of tunnel being built for the Circle Line collapsed, apparently when a retaining wall used in the tunnel's construction gave way. This occurred near what was to become the Nicoll Highway station on the Circle line, not far from the Merdeka Bridge. The accident left a collapse zone 150 m wide, 100 m long, and 30 m deep. Four workers were killed, with three more injured.
A criminal inquiry found the main contractor Nishimatsu Construction Company and its officers, as well as key Land Transport Authority officers responsible for the collapse. Several other officers and subcontractors were reprimanded and issued warnings in connection with the accident.
As a result of this accident, the first phase of the Circle Line will be completed in 2010 instead. The affected station has been shifted about 100 m away from the accident site and is now located at Republic Avenue.
[edit] Status
The completed line will reduce travelling time for commuters by allowing them to shorten trips between north to east or north to west and vice versa, bypassing busy interchanges like City Hall and Raffles Place.
The project will be implemented in five stages at an estimated cost of S$6.66 billion. Part of the Circle Line is to be operational by 2008, with the entire line expected to be fully operational by 2010. It was originally scheduled to be completed earlier, with full completion by 2008, however the Nicoll Highway collapse caused a setback which led to an extension of construction time. As a result, the Circle Line is now targeted to open from 2010 instead.
The Downtown Extension branch of the Circle Line is targeted to complete by 2012.
[edit] Stations
- Stage One
- Dhoby Ghaut (interchange with North South Line and North East Line)
- Bras Basah
- Esplanade
- Promenade (interchange with Downtown Extension)
- Nicoll Highway
- Stadium
- Stage Two
- Mountbatten
- Dakota
- Paya Lebar (interchange with East West Line)
- MacPherson
- Tai Seng
- Stage Three
- Bartley
- Serangoon (interchange with North East Line)
- Lorong Chuan
- Bishan (interchange with North South Line)
- Marymount
- Stage Four
- Thomson (to be opened at a later date)
- Bukit Brown (to be opened at a later date)
- Botanic Gardens
- Farrer Road
- Holland Village
- Buona Vista (interchange with East West Line)
- one-north
- Kent Ridge
- Stage Five
- West Coast (to be opened at a later date)
- Pasir Panjang
- Labrador Park
- Telok Blangah
- HarbourFront (interchange with North East Line)
- Downtown Extension (from Promenade Station)
- Bayfront
- Landmark
- Cross Street
- Chinatown (Interchange with North East MRT line)
