Singapore Metro-MRT

Singapore METRO

The Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) is a heavy rail rapid transit system that constitutes the bulk of the railway network in Singapore, spanning—with the exception of the forested core and the island's rural northwest—the length and width of the city-state's main island.


Singapore is a young country. It achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1963, when Singapore was one of the poorest nations in the world. However, after a strong industrial development between the decades of 1960 and 1990, it reached levels of economic growth similar to those of rich countries. It was known as one of the four Asian Tigers due to its rapid industrialization, alongside Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea. 


Nowadays, Singapore has the busiest harbors in the world in terms of commerce. It also has a strong influence on the region. The country’s population is barely over five million people. However, it receives approximately 10 million tourists each year. The Singaporean government did a survey during the 70s, and noticed the rapid increase in the number of tourists for such a small territory. Therefore, the Singaporean government took the decision of building a system of mass transportation.


The Singapore airport i.e Changi airport is also well connected with metros. Passengers can directly board from the airport to any place in Singapore by using the metro services. Not only this almost every major attraction in Singapore like the marina bay sand or the bugis street any place is easily reached using metro.


Lines and stations


The MRT consists of five lines. The first line to open was the North South Line, which was inaugurated in 1987, and the last line to open was Downtown Line, which was inaugurated in 2013. The MRT network is 178.2 km long. It offers transportation to the main urban and commercial areas of the city and is considered the backbone of the public transportation system in Singapore. Also, the MRT allows connections to the bus services. The bus services act as a complement of the MRT by offering transportation to areas that have no access to the urban railway network. The lines are the following: 


North South MRT Line: The North South Line was the first line of the metro system in the country. It begins from the Jurong East station in the neighborhood of the same name, and ends at the Marina South Pier MRT Station in the new neighborhood of Straits View. It has 27 stations distributed in a 44 km long network. Eleven of those stations are underground, while the rest are elevated via viaducts. The line is red in the metro’s maps. This fact is especially useful for the millions of tourists that visit the country each year. 


East West MRT Line:The East West line was the second line to be constructed for the metro system, The total length of this line’s railway is 57.2 km, making it the longest route of the MRT. This line comprises 35 stations. It begins at Pasir Ris MRT Station in the neighborhood of the same name, and ends at Tuas Link MRT Station in the region of Tuas. This line offers a trip to the Singapore Changi Airport from the Tanah Merah station. This line’s stations are in green color in the metro’s map.


East West MRT Line:The East West line was the second line to be constructed for the metro system, and was inaugurated on November 4th, 1989. The total length of this line’s railway is 57.2 km, making it the longest route of the MRT. This line comprises 35 stations. It begins at Pasir Ris MRT Station in the neighborhood of the same name, and ends at Tuas Link MRT Station in the region of Tuas. This line offers a trip to the Singapore Changi Airport from the Tanah Merah station. This line’s stations are in green color in the metro’s maps.


North East MRT Line: The North East Line was the third line to offer transportation to Singaporeans, and was inaugurated on June 20th, 2003. It was the first fully automated line due to its driverless trains. This line’s railway is 20 kilometers long, which begins at HarbourFront Station in the Bukit Merah neighborhood, and ends at Punggol MRT/LRT Station in Punggol. It comprises 16 stations.


Circle MRT Line: It was inaugurated on May 28th, 2009, and it was the fourth line to be inaugurated. It has the peculiarity of being completely underground. Its railway is 35.5 km long, beginning at the Dhoby Ghaut terminal in the Orchard Road neighborhood, and ending at HarbourFront MRT Station in Bukit Merah. It is divided into 30 stations. Just like the North East MRT Line, it is also a fully automated line. This line is one of the longest driverless lines in the world. This line is orange in the metro’s maps.


Downtown MRT Line: The Downtown Line (abbreviated DTL) is the most recently built line in the system, and it is still under construction. Its railway is 20.9 km long, and comprises 18 stations. This line begins at the Bukit Panjang Terminal in the Bukit Panjang New Town community, and ends at the Chinatown MRT Station in Outram. Just like the Circle MRT Line, this line is entirely underground. The DTL line is blue in the metro’s maps. Once this line is fully finished, its railway will be 44 kilometers long and will have 36 stations. 

Fares and tickets

Like other asian countries the price varies from destinations. In simple words the longer the distance travelled the higher price you pay. There are various options for cards such as standard tickets, card, student card, senior citizen card etc. which is explained in detail in the link below.

View fares and card details here



Tips

1.Bubble Gum is illegal in Singapore, therefore, refrain from consuming it in the metro’s facilities.

2.You cannot carry pets nor any other kind of animals on the metro. Therefore, do not bring you pets with you or use another form of transportation.

3.The student passes fares for the metro are different than those for buses. Therefore, check the prices for bus service student passes beforehand.

4.The ticket vending machines use state-of-the-art technology, which allows them to accept Samsung Pay and Apple Pay to pay for the tickets.


Visit this website to know more about Singapore metro



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