TEL, CRL MRT lines to be extended to serve Changi Airport Terminal 5
SINGAPORE – The Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) and Cross Island Line (CRL) will be extended to serve Changi Airport Terminal 5, connecting the new terminal to the city centre and other regional hubs.
The future TEL and CRL stations at T5 will be housed within the terminal's ground transportation centre, which will consolidate train, bus, taxi and other transport services, said airport operator Changi Airport Group (CAG) on May 14.
CAG said the TEL will link T5 directly to the city centre, and further northwards to the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System Link terminal at Woodlands North.
It added that T5's connection to CRL will allow ease of travel to other major hubs such as Punggol Digital District and Jurong Lake District.
The last station on the eastern stretch of CRL is currently Aviation Park, which will be extended to T5 .
Aviation Park Station will serve the wider airport community at the Changi Airfreight Centre and Changi East Industrial Zone. Both are adjacent to T5, which is slated to open in the mid-2030s.
Asked about the alignment of the TEL and CRL extensions, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said more details will be announced when ready.
As part of the TEL Stage 5, there are two remaining stations – Bedok South and Sungei Bedok – which are due to be completed by 2026.
Additionally, three MRT stations on the East-West Line (EWL) – Tanah Merah, Expo and Changi Airport – will undergo modifications from 2025 to be converted into TEL stations in future.
The planned TEL extension will bring travellers past its last eastern stop at the upcoming Sungei Bedok station and pass through T5.
It will then connect to the existing Changi Airport station, which will become part of the TEL instead.
The first phase of CRL – comprising 12 stations from Aviation Park to Bright Hill – will be completed by 2030. Phase two, which has six stations from Turf City to Jurong Lake District, will be ready in 2032.
When both the TEL and CRL extensions are completed, passengers can transfer between the MRT lines at the T5 station.
Speaking to the media at a briefing on May 14 , Mr Ong Chee Chiau , managing director of Changi East at CAG , said members of the public have to take the MRT from Changi Airport station to T5 station to travel between Terminal 2 and T5.
Passengers who have cleared immigration can travel between Terminal 2 and T5 using an automated people mover system similar to the Skytrain.
Esther Loi is a journalist at The Straits Times, where she covers transport issues.
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