Contract J1018 - Advanced earthworks for Tengah Depot

Ahead of the award of contract J101 for the construction of Tengah depot, advanced works contract J1018 has been underway for the clearing of the land. Formerly a densely vegetated area, work has been going on steadily for about a year and progressively, the land is being leveled out in preparation for the commencement of civil works (building of the physical structures).

06 August 2001
Source: Google Earth

10 February 2018
Source: Google Earth

30 September 2018
Source: Google Earth

Contract tendering update - J101, J102, J103, J105, J110

Following the official announcement of the Jurong Region Line (JRL) in May 2018, the tendering process for the civil contracts began around November last year. To date several large civil works contracts have been floated for tender.

Contract list as of 18 February 2019.

These include the civil works contracts for the construction of Tengah depot (contract J101), Choa Chu Kang interchange, Choa Chu Kang West and Tengah stations (contract J102), Hong Kah and Corporation stations (contract J103), Jurong West and Bahar Junction stations (contract J105) and Jurong East interchange (contract J110). In total, there should be approximately 13 civil works contracts for the line. To date 5 of these contracts have been floated and 1 contact - J102 - has been closed.

Contract awards can be expected approximately 6 months after the closure of the tender while tender of the remaining contracts should be expected to be completed by the year-end. Once the contracts have been awarded, a ground breaking ceremony will be held - potentially some time after the first quarter of 2020. This is when construction along the line will begin to ramp up in intensity. In the meantime, advanced work contracts are underway to facilitate the relocation of utilities, with the bulk of these contracts due for completion by September 2020.

Pre-construction - Choa Chu Kang

Choa Chu Kang station is set to be the northern terminus of the Jurong Region Line (JRL), providing interchange access to the North South Line (NSL) and Bukit Panjang LRT. In preparation for the upcoming line, some changes have already taken place as of the time of writing, with others to follow once construction on the line gains momentum.

05 March 2017 - A view of the Choa Chu Kang bus interchange prior to moving to the temporary interchange behind Lot 1.

Station renders

Usually when a new MRT line is announced, the Land Transport Authority releases information to the press along with a few renders of how the stations would look. These offer perspectives of how the stations would integrate into the environments and allow the public something to look forward to. However, this was not the case for the Jurong Region Line (JRL) during its announcement. Nonetheless, we have looked around and found several renders that showcase the stations' designs.

Render for contract J1001 by GreenhilLi. According to Channel Newsasia, this station happens to be Tengah Plantation.
Source: GreenhilLi

Tender & Pre-Qualification - Contact J101

The first contract for the Jurong Region Line (JRL) has been floated for tender & pre-qualification. Tendering for contract J101, for the construction of Tengah JRL depot and facilities, will tentatively close on 07 January 2019 barring any extensions.

The delivery date for this contract is 30 December 2025. This is indicative that phase 1 of the JRL, from Choa Chu Kang to Boon Lay and Tawas stations, will likely commence operations in the first quarter of 2026.

Bahar Junction

We have noticed that there were a lot of questions regarding the design and arrangement of Bahar Junction station based on the illustrations from LTA and media. Here's our take on how it may look like, and how it will operate.

Illustration of how Bahar Junction station may be configured.
Credit: y2koh

This illustration was shown in one of our previous post. The speculated plan is based on the operating diagrams shown in LTA's promotional video on YouTube as well as a diagram on The Straits Times. We expect that there will only be 3 platforms at the station, all on the same level to facilitate transfers without the need to transverse through lifts and escalators. However, many readers may notice the lack of direction service on some directions, namely from Boon Lay/Jurong Pier towards Tengah/Choa Chu Kang (CCK), from Tengah/CCK towards Nanyang Technological University (NTU), and from NTU towards Boon Lay/Jurong Pier.

2028 MRT & LRT system map

The MRT and LRT system map with the inclusion of the Jurong Region Line.
Source: Today

In case you were wondering how the Jurong Region Line would fit into the overall MRT & LRT system map, have a look for yourself. The map will be joined by the upcoming Cross Island Line and other future lines which the Land Transport Authority in currently studying. In addition, we get a first look at how the Jurong Region Line stations may look in the years to come.

Tengah Plantation station artist impression.
Source: Today