Joyrides and hikes: Commuters keep these 11 new Thomson-East Coast Line stations buzzing on the first day of operations
The third stage of the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) opened for passenger service on Sunday (Nov 13), drawing crowds taking photos of the trains and stations on Singapore's newest MRT line.
Commuters included families, seniors and fitness enthusiasts on their way to a morning workout.
Mr Jacky Zhu, 40, his wife and their children aged three to eight years old, were excited about taking the train on the first day of its official operation.
The family boarded the MRT at Great World station at 9am and were heading to Gardens by the Bay.
The software engineer who works in a fintech firm said: "I wanted to see how long it would take for my daily commute to my office in Marina Bay."
The 11 new stations which opened on Sunday are Stevens, Napier, Orchard Boulevard, Orchard, Great World, Havelock, Outram Park, Maxwell, Shenton Way, Marina Bay and Gardens by the Bay.
Commuters were given a preview of the line on Friday, when free rides were offered along 11 new stations but without any connections to any existing MRT lines. Some 500,000 turned up that day, said the Land Transport Authority.
Stevens station on the TEL connects to the Downtown Line, Orchard station to the North-South Line, Outram Park to the East-West and North-East lines and Marina Bay to the Circle and North-South lines.
Another passenger on the first day, Mr Dylan Tan, 31, took the train from Havelock station at 9am to meet his friends at Beauty World station for a morning hike at the Rifle Range Nature Park which opened on Saturday.
Mr Tan, a relationship manager in a bank, who goes hiking regularly on the weekends said that to visit the Rail Corridor, a trip by public transport from his home in Tiong Bahru would take 45 minutes.
The journey is now shortened to 20 minutes as he does not have to take a bus to Newton station before changing to the Downtown Line, Mr Tan said.
Mr Ajit Nair, 64 and his wife Ms Selina Chin, 63, also welcomed the greater accessibility the Thomson-East Coast line will bring.
The couple, who live at Nassim Hill, had taken a seven-minute walk to the Orchard Boulevard station near their home as they wanted to have breakfast at the Killiney coffee shop at Camden Medical.
However, as it was closed, they decided to go on a joyride and look for alternative breakfast options along the line.
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Ms Selina Chin, a lawyer, said: "It's going to be really convenient for people to visit Tanglin Mall which is just behind Orchard Boulevard station. In the past, most people would have to drive there if there was a restaurant they really wanted to visit."
The TEL's first stage opened in January 2020 with three stations. The line starts at Woodlands North station and, with its official opening on Sunday, will run down to the city centre and Gardens by the Bay. Ten more stations, stretching from the Founders' Memorial in Marina East to Sungei Bedok, will open in two stages by 2025.
On Sunday, Minister for Health Ong Ye Kung and other MPs from the Sembawang GRC, Mr Vikram Nair and Ms Poh Li San, joined 100 residents on a tour of the TEL between Woodlands South and Maxwell stations.
Organised by grassroots leaders from Sembawang GRC, the half-day excursion also included a historical visit at URA Centre.
Ms Poh said: "The Thomson East-Coast Line is a real gift to our Woodlands residents. Besides the North-South Line we are also connected by a second MRT line that brings us to town."
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