Cross Island Line

The Cross Island Line (CRL) will be the nineth Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line in Singapore. The line will be 50 km long and is expected to begin service in 2030.

As the name implies, the line connects Changi to Loyang, Pasir Ris, Hougang, Ang Mo Kio, Bukit Timah, Clementi, West Coast and Jurong.

History

It was first announced in January 2013.

The Nature Society (Singapore) (NSS) has opposed the future Cross Island MRT Line cutting through nature reserves and has proposed an alternative route that cuts southwards via Lornie Road around the reserve. Plans for a 50-kilometre Cross Island Line were announced by the Government in January this year, where the underground line was depicted to cut through the Central Catchment Nature Reserve near MacRitchie Reservoir. The alignment cuts directly under primary forest and regrowth forests over a century old, according to maps in the position paper. The NSS said its concerns relate to the degradation of forest habitats from soil investigation and related engineering works that will be required above-ground. Surface works are expected to result in forest clearance, compaction of soil along the rail line's alignment, toxic material spillage and siltation that will seriously damage one of the two most pristine stream ecosystems in the reserve. The society's proposed alternate route will add 1.7 kilometres to 2 kilometres to the Cross Island Line, and an estimated four minutes' additional travel time. [1]