Woodlands MRT station

Woodlands MRT station is a Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) interchange station on the North South Line and Thomson–East Coast Line in Woodlands, Singapore. It is located next to the Woodlands Temporary Bus Interchange and Causeway Point. A circular road, Woodlands Square, provides access to the station and its surrounding developments. Woodlands station is one of the five MRT stations in Singapore that have both an above-ground platform and an underground platform, the other four stations being Paya Lebar MRT station, Buona Vista MRT station, Tampines MRT station and Expo MRT station.

Not to be confused with Woodlands North MRT station, Woodlands South MRT station, or Woodlands railway station.
 NS9  TE2 
Woodlands
兀兰
ஊட்லண்ட்ஸ்
Woodlands
Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station
Exit 6 of Woodlands station
Location30 Woodlands Avenue 2
Singapore 738343 (NSL)
11 Woodlands Square
Singapore 737736 (TEL)
Coordinates1°26′13.54″N 103°47′11.34″E
Operated bySMRT Trains Ltd (SMRT Corporation)
Line(s)
  North South Line
  Thomson–East Coast Line
Platforms4 (2 island platforms)
Tracks4
ConnectionsWoodlands Temporary Bus Interchange, Taxi
Construction
Structure typeElevated (North South line)
Underground (Thomson–East Coast line)
Platform levels3
ParkingYes (Causeway Point, Woodlands Civic Centre, Woods Square)
Bicycle facilitiesYes
Disabled accessYes
History
Opened10 February 1996 (1996-02-10) (North South line)
31 January 2020 (2020-01-31) (Thomson–East Coast line)
ElectrifiedYes
Previous namesWoodlands Central
Services
Preceding station   Mass Rapid Transit   Following station
towards Jurong East
North South Line
Terminus
Thomson–East Coast Line
Terminus
Location
Woodlands
Woodlands station in Singapore

History

North South Line
Woodlands station NSL platform
Concourse level at NSL Woodlands station
Exit 2 (formerly Exit A) of NSL Woodlands station

The government came up with a proposal to build the North South line (NSL) Woodlands Extension in 1990 with the aim of extending the existing North South line, thus connecting Choa Chu Kang in the northwest to Yishun in the North. Woodlands was one of four stations in the initial proposal which was later expanded to six.

Construction commenced in 1991 and the station was opened on 10 February 1996 along with the other five stations on the Woodlands Extension.[1]

It was the first and only station to have a bus interchange located underneath, before the temporary relocation of the bus interchange on 12 March 2016.[2]

Following numerous incidents of commuters falling on the tracks and unauthorized intrusions, the Land Transport Authority made the decision in 2008 to install half-height platform screen doors for all above-ground stations in phases. Installation for this station began from 17 September 2011 and started operation on 30 November that year.[3]

This station was installed with high-volume low-speed fans, which commenced operation on 6 November 2012.

On 4 November 2013, the MRT station became the first station to be awarded with the Building and Construction Authority’s Green Mark (Gold), and tenants of Woodlands Xchange also became the first shop owners in Singapore to be certified with the Project: Eco-Shop label.[4]

Cash top ups are not accepted at this station's passenger service centre from 21 January 2018.[5]

Thomson-East Coast Line
Woodlands station TEL platform

The Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) Woodlands station was announced by then Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew on 29 August 2012.[6]

On 15 August 2014, LTA announced that Woodlands station would be part of the proposed Thomson East-Coast line (TEL). The station will be constructed as part of Phase 1, consisting of 3 stations between Woodlands North and Woodlands South, and is expected to be completed in 2019.[7][8] Contract T203 for the design and construction of Woodlands Station and associated cut-and-cover tunnels was awarded to GS Engineering & Construction Corp at a sum of S$292 million on October 2013.[9]

Another contract, Contract T206 for the construction of bored tunnels between Woodlands Station, Woodlands South and Mandai Depot, was awarded to Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co., Ltd at a sum of S$421 million on 18 October 2013.[10] The contract includes completion of twin bored tunnels between Woodlands Station and Woodlands South, twin bored tunnels between Woodlands South and crossover tunnels to Mandai Depot, as well as a single bored tunnel between Woodlands Station and Mandai Depot.

Construction began with a ground breaking ceremony held at the Woodlands station construction site on 27 June 2014 and the station was opened on 31 January 2020.[11][12][13]

Incidents

There were claims on Facebook that Woodlands station was closed for disinfection due to a suspected case of COVID-19 (then called 2019-nCoV) infection on 28 January 2020. However, the posts were false and the station operations remained as per normal.[14][15]

Artwork

A 15 metres (49 ft) high sculpture called Faces II weighing 4,000 kilograms (8,800 lb), designed by Singaporean artist Min Chen, is displayed at the NSL Woodlands station platform.[16]

Following the construction of the Thomson-East Coast Line, an artwork called “The Day’s Thoughts Of A Homespun Journey Into The Night” designed by Artist Terence Lin illustrates drawings of buses, trains and other vehicles on their journeys towards their destinations.[17] The artwork spans two walls of the interior TEL station, along the passageway from Exits 5, 6 and 7 and the transfer link to NSL, and between the under-renovation Woodlands Regional Bus Interchange and Exit 4.

Cultural references
  • Woodlands is one of the four MRT stations featured on the Singapore Edition of the Monopoly board.

References
  1. Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala (November 10, 2003). "Woodlands MRT line". National Library Board Singapore. Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
  2. "Bus interchange under Woodlands station". The Straits Times. 14 October 1993.
  3. Wong, Siew Ying (26 January 2008). "Above-ground MRT stations to have platform screen doors by 2012". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 29 February 2008. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
  4. "SMRT unveils Singapore's first Eco- MRT Station and Xchange". SMRT Corporation. 4 November 2013. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  5. Min Zhang, Lim (31 August 2017). "11 train stations will no longer accept cash-top ups at counters from Sept 1". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 2 September 2017.
  6. ""TSL System Map & Station Footprints (Woodlands station)"". www.facebook.com. 29 August 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  7. "Joint News Release by the Land Transport Authority & Singapore Land Authority - Thomson-East Coast Line: New MRT Links in the East | Press Room | Land Transport Authority". lta.gov.sg. 2014-08-19. Archived from the original on 2014-08-19. Retrieved 2020-02-13.
  8. "LTA | Upcoming Projects | Rail Expansion | Thomson-East Coast Line". www.lta.gov.sg. 2020-02-13. Archived from the original on 2019-12-25. Retrieved 2020-02-13.
  9. "LTA Awards Four Contracts for Thomson Line". www.lta.gov.sg. 18 October 2013. Archived from the original on 7 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  10. "LTA Awards Four Contracts for Thomson Line". www.lta.gov.sg. 18 October 2013. Archived from the original on 7 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  11. "Groundbreaking launches Thomson Line construction". Railway Gazette International. 27 June 2014. Archived from the original on 7 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  12. "Celebrating the Groundbreaking of Thomson Line". www.mot.gov.sg. 27 June 2014. Archived from the original on 7 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  13. Wong, Kai Yi (31 January 2020). "3 stations on Thomson-East Coast Line begin operations". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 5 February 2020. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  14. "Clarifications on falsehoods on woodlands MRT closure". www.gov.sg. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  15. "Ministry of Transport, Singapore". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  16. Thulaja, Naidu Ratnala (November 13, 2003). "Woodlands MRT station". National Library Board Singapore. Archived from the original on February 25, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
  17. "LTA | News Room | news-releases | Factsheet: Thomson-East Coast Line". www.lta.gov.sg. Retrieved 2020-06-07.
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