The Land Transport Authority (LTA) marked the start of construction for Singapore’s seventh MRT line, the Jurong Region Line (JRL), with a ground-breaking and viaduct launching ceremony today. The event was officiated by Minister for Transport S Iswaran at the future Tengah Town (Annex A).
Better Connectivity in the West
2. The JRL, a 24-kilometre long elevated MRT line with 24 stations including three interchange stations at Boon Lay, Choa Chu Kang and Jurong East, will open in three stages from 2027 to 2029. The JRL is expected to significantly improve connectivity in the western part of Singapore and support developments in the Jurong area (Annex B).
3. The JRL is expected to add more than 60,000 additional households within a 10-minute walk from a train station. It will connect residential areas including Gek Poh and Pandan Gardens to key activity nodes in Jurong that currently do not have direct links to the MRT network such as the Jurong Industrial Estate, Jurong Innovation District and Nanyang Technological University (NTU). It will also support the development of the Jurong Lake District, which is set to be the largest commercial hub outside the Central Business District.
4. The JRL’s ridership is expected to reach 200,000 daily in the initial years and rise to more than 500,000 a day when the Jurong Innovation District, Tengah Town and Jurong Lake District are fully developed.
5. Commuters can expect substantial time savings when travelling to the Western part of Singapore with the JRL (Annex C). For example, a trip from Choa Chu Kang MRT station to NTU’s Lee Wee Nam Library will be shortened from 60 minutes to 35 minutes, while commuting from Woodlands MRT to Jurong Island Checkpoint will take 45 minutes instead of around 80 minutes today.
Engineering Challenges
6. Constructing the JRL through a mature and densely developed corridor is challenging as works are carried out along an alignment with curves and limited space over busy roads, major expressways and canals. Slightly narrower and shorter carriages will enable the train to negotiate and manoeuvre through these curves at built-up areas along the JRL track.
7. As the JRL is designed to navigate through existing developments, minimising noise disturbance is a key design consideration. Hence, permanent noise barriers will be installed along viaducts that are near residential areas.
8. LTA engineers have undertaken extensive planning and rolled out a number of mitigating measures to minimise disruptions to traffic and the environment. Traffic diversions along Choa Chu Kang Avenue 3, Jurong East Central and Jurong West Avenue 4 have been successfully implemented to allow for the construction of stations and viaduct structures. LTA will also work closely with the stakeholders to mitigate construction dust and noise as well as to always ensure safety.
Sustainable Public Transport Infrastructure
9. LTA is committed to reducing the environmental impact of our projects and to promoting sustainability. This is reflected in the way we design and plan our transport infrastructure along with construction activities.
10. For example, all JRL stations will be fitted with photovoltaic (PV) solar panels, generating renewable energy for station operations. The PVs will help reduce carbon footprint of JRL operations by providing a constant source of power with little to no greenhouse gas emissions.
11. In addition, JRL stations are designed to allow crossflow natural ventilation (Annex D) to reduce mechanical energy usage from fans and air-conditioning.
12. For more information about JRL, please refer to LTA’s website go.gov.sg/jrl.