Downtown Line 2 (Bukit Timah Line)
July 15, 2008http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIM...storyTools.gif
LTA unveils locations of DTL stage 2 stations
By Christopher Tan
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The line, one of half a dozen new rail projects Singapore is embarking on up to 2020, will make stops near schools like Singapore Chinese Girls School, Raffles Girls School, Hwa Chong Institution and National Junior College.
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THE locations of stations along Downtown Line Stage 2, a 16.6km stretch joining residents in Bukit Panjang and Bukit Timah to the city centre, were revealed on Tuesday.
Several residential developments like the Equatorial, Blossomvale as well as the Housing Board heartland of Bukit Panjang will also have stations near them.
Starting from Singapore's downtown is the line's southern-most station of Rochor. North of this is the first of three interchanges, Little India station, which connects the North-east Line.
Next is Newton Interchange, near Singapore's most famous hawker centre; and then Stevens Station, under Stevens Road and a stone's throw from the Raffles Town Club.
After that comes the Botanic Gardens Station, which intersects with the Circle Line.
The line then moves through Singapore's most prestigious residential area, with stops near Duchess Avenue, Sixth Avenue (actually nearer to Fourth) and Blackmore (near King Albert Park).
In the vicinity are the Nissan and BMW showrooms.
From there, the line crosses over to the shop-and-dine hub of Beauty World, where a station will be located.
Stations north of Beauty World are Hillview (near Dairy Farm) and Cashew (near Assumption English School and St Joseph's Church).
Next, the Downtown Line links up with the Bukit Panjang LRT, at the Petir station.
The line terminates at Gali Batu Depot, which is to be sited on part of the Kwong Hou Sua Teochew Cemetery.
In all, there are 12 stations, of which three are interchanges (Little India, Newton and Botanic Gardens). As with the Circle Line, the Land Transport Authority will be asking the public to suggest permanent names for the other nine stations.
Stage 2 of Downtown Line is part of a $12 billion 40km project linking the north-western and eastern parts of Singapore to the new downtown. Major construction will start middle of next year.
Stage 1 is is where the Integrated Resort, Gardens by the Bay and new financial district are. Stage 3 goes through MacPherson, Bedok Reservoir and Tampines areas to end at the East-West Line's Expo Station.
The LTA, meanwhile, on Tuesday gave another progress report on the Circle Line. Stage 3, linking Bartley to Marymount, is on track to be the first portion of the orbital rail line to be opened in mid-2009.
The five stations along this stretch are expected to attain temporary occupation permits by end of this year. Overall, about 90 per cent of tunnels of the 33km line are completed, with the rest by early next year
Route, stations for Downtown Line 2 unveiled
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Published July 16, 2008
Route, stations for Downtown Line 2 unveiled
By SAMUEL EE
RESIDENTS in north-western Singapore now have an idea of how the Downtown Line 2 (DTL2) will run through their part of the island after its rail alignment and station locations were announced yesterday.
The 16.6km second stage of the Downtown Line will provide rail access to the Bukit Timah Corridor.
It comprises one depot and 12 stations, including three interchange stations at Little India, Newton and the Botanic Gardens linking to the North-east Line (NEL), North-south Line (NSL) and Circle Line (CCL) respectively.
The update on DTL2 was given by Minister of Transport Raymond Lim during a site visit to the Circle Line's Esplanade Station yesterday.
According to the Land Transport Authority, DTL2 will offer many connectivity benefits when it is completed in 2015.
One of them is the significant time savings for commuters, said LTA chief executive Yam Ah Mee. 'For example, the current one-hour journey from Bukit Panjang to the city centre will be reduced by a third to approximately 40 minutes,' he said, adding that accessibility to other parts of Singapore will also be improved as commuters can transfer to other MRT lines at the three DTL2 interchange stations. In addition, DTL2 will link them directly to the commercial, residential and entertainment developments in the Marina Bay area.
'DTL2 will support the growth of these new developments, and more importantly, make public transport a more viable commuting choice,' said Mr Yam.
LTA said that land acquisitions for DTL2 will be minimal and limited to a two-storey building at Halifax Road and two strips of land at Upper Bukit Timah Road. The land to be acquired was gazetted yesterday by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA).
The government announced its decision to build the $12 billion DTL in three stages on April 27 last year. Since then, LTA has called the tender for the civil construction of DTL1.
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12 MRT stations for Bukit Timah by 2015
http://www.straitstimes.com/Prime%2B...ry_258049.html
July 16, 2008
12 MRT stations for Bukit Timah by 2015
180,000 rides expected on the underground line
By Christopher Tan, Senior Correspondent
A DOZEN new MRT stations will come up in the Bukit Timah area as part of Stage 2 of the Downtown Line.
They will serve several schools such as Singapore Chinese Girls' School, National Junior College, Hwa Chong Institution, Nanyang Girls' High, Raffles Girls' Primary, and Assumption English School.
This phase, to be completed by 2015, will give Bukit Timah residents access to trains for the first time. They are now served only by buses.
The stations will also serve the Toh Yi and Bukit Panjang Housing Board estates, and take commuters to shopping malls such as Serene Centre, Beauty World and Ten Mile Junction.
The Downtown Line is being built in three stages and will have 40 stations, with trains running from the north-
western and eastern areas of Singapore to the Central Business District and Marina Bay.
Stage 2 will intersect other MRT lines at Little India, Newton and the Botanic Gardens.
Details of this phase were announced yesterday. This section spans 16.6km, from Rochor in the south to Bukit Panjang in the north.
Taking the train is expected to shave travelling time from Bukit Panjang to Marina Bay by almost half an hour.
Major construction on the line is expected to start in the middle of next year, and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said very little land acquisition will be needed.
LTA deputy chief executive Lim Bok Ngam said builders will face new challenges.
For one thing, the area's rocky soil, unlike the marine clay encountered in most previous lines, is hard, so tunnel boring will be slower.
The all-underground line will also go under the Rochor Canal, which will have to be diverted during construction.
The line is expected to be well used, said LTA chief executive Yam Ah Mee. He expects it to account for 180,000 rides a day - more than a third of the $12billion Downtown Line's anticipated total ridership of 500,000.
Besides giving Bukit Timah residents quicker access to the city, the line will bring another benefit: The values of their properties are expected to rise.
Jones Lang LaSalle's head of research (South-east Asia) Chua Yang Liang said: 'Typically, properties within walking distance of MRT stations would see an enhancement in value.'
But Mr Nicholas Mak, director of research and consultancy at Knight Frank, said the completion date is a long way off. In that time, 'the economy and financial market will have a stronger effect on property prices'.
Stage 1 of the Downtown Line is a 4.3km stretch with six stations. It will be completed in 2013. Stage 3, spanning 19.1km with 15 stops, will be ready by 2016.
When the line is completed, a commuter can travel from Bukit Panjang to Tampines in 65 minutes.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JOYCE TEO
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Heartland to hotspots in under an hour
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Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Heartland to hotspots in under an hour
Hillview and Bukit Timah areas to get rail link to town
Neo Chai Chin
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FROM the heartland of Bukit Panjang to the bustle of Marina Bay in 45 minutes. In 2015, that will become a reality for residents in north-western Singapore, when the Downtown Line Two (DTL2) is up and running.
Scything through the Bukit Timah and :Upper Bukit Timah areas, it will mean an extra means of transport for students of the many schools in the area, such as Hwa Chong Institution and Raffles Girls’ Primary School. Consisting of 12 stations and stretching 16.6km, the new rail line will “enhance accessibility ... into corridors currently not served by rail”, said Mr Yam Ah Mee, chief executive of the Land Transport Authority (LTA), yesterday as he announced the locations of the DTL2 stations.
“While neighbouring estates, such as Bukit Batok and Clementi have been enjoying the benefits of the rail system, residents along the Bukit Timah corridor have mainly been served by our bus network,” said Mr Yam.
This will soon change, with construction of DTL2 due to start in the middle of next year. The LTA had announced last April that the DTL would be built in three stages: DTL1, due for completion in 2013, will run from Bugis to Chinatown. DTL3 is scheduled for 2016 and will run from Chinatown to Expo. The DTL is expected to cost $12 billion to build and have a daily ridership of half a million.
Three stations on DTL2 will be interchanges — Botanic Gardens, Newton and Little India — which will connect commuters to the Circle Line, the North South Line and the North East Line, respectively.
DTL2 will link north-western Singapore directly to the Marina Bay area, including the integrated resort. It will result in “significant time savings” — for example, the current one-hour journey from Bukit Panjang to the city centre will be cut to 40 minutes.
DTL2’s land acquisition will also be minimal, confined to a vacant two-storey building on Halifax Road and two narrow strips at Upper Bukit Timah Road.
Schools near future DTL2 stations welcomed the news. With a station to be built right on Hwa Chong Institution’s doorstep, students, parents and staff “will enjoy even greater convenience and comfort, travelling to school”, said its principal and chief executive officer Ang Wee Hiong.
Boys’ Town in Upper Bukit Timah, which has about 1,600 children under its wing, will also benefit greatly, said its director-general Irene Loi. “A very high percentage of our kids take public transport, or the school bus. This will help not only the kids; it will also help bring in more people from around the island to work for us,” said Mrs Loi.
Real estate agency ERA Singapore’s assistant vice-president Eugene Lim said the announcement of DTL2 sites would cause “initial euphoria” in residents living close by, and some sellers would “take the opportunity to raise the asking price” of their properties.
“It will make condominiums more marketable, and properties around the schools could see even more enhanced value,” Mr Lim said.
Meanwhile, work on the Circle Line’s five stages is progressing well, said Transport Minister Raymond Lim yesterday when he toured the new Esplanade station. He said around 90 per cent of the Circle Line’s tunnels are complete, and plans are on-track to open Stage 3 of the line in the middle of next year.
