Singapore Overground

Singapore Overground is a commuter rail in Singapore. They connects to Singapore, Johor Bahru and School Island. It has 33 stations. The Overground uses 25,000kV AC (50 Hz).

The name has been used since 2007, and it took all KTM Singapore, starting from 2 December 2007. It is as part of Overground Masterplan 1.

The Overground is best described as a Commuter rail system, especially as many of the lines share traffic with freight services, although there is an intention to introduce metro frequencies eventually on all the routes.

Before the rebranding in 1996, the KTM or Keretapi Tanah Melayu refers to the railway between Singapore and Malaysia. When Singapore was British rule and separation of Singapore, as until independence, it was named "British Section", now to the western part of East-West Rail Link. The "Malaysian Section" was used for North-South Line in addition to Channel Tunnel Rail Link.

The sections north of Tampines are gazetted as 'school line'.

Current system
Tanjong Pagar to Buona Vista ('on') is the only express route to run.

Tampines Primary School station presents an unusual problem with the Oyster card "Pay as you Go" and EZ-Link electronic ticketing system. Ordinarily, MRT passengers with Oyster cards or EZ-Link cards must "touch in" at the start of their journey and "touch out" at the end. Those who fail to "touch out" will be charged the maximum possible Underground fare from their starting point. Tramlink passengers who enter TPS station cannot "touch out", since tram stops provide no facility to do so. Instead they must "touch in" a second time on the tram platform at Wimbledon, after passing through the ticket barrier.

ATO and driverless operation may also be introduced on Crossrail, and Overground, plus other lines by 2015 to 2020.


 * in morning peak, trains ran from Jurong East to Bukit Timah also cross to Johor Bahru. Also, including Tampines Primary to School West services and Johor Bahru to Tanjong Pagar West services.
 * in afternoon peak, 24 Tampines Primary to School/School West services, which has been discontinued on 6 September 2010. Also including Bukit Timah to Tanjong Pagar West station, which has 12 train trips, due to impending number of Lunchtime Xpress, and it will be extended to East Tanjong Pagar this coming 6 September 2010. Train frequencies will still be 3 - 4 minutes.
 * in evening peak, trains also ran from Johor Bahru to Tanjong Pagar West services. At least 8 School West to Sheung Ten shuttles, which will be extended to TPS E-Hub on 7 September 2010.

On 1 July 2011, LTA and Singapore Overground cessated the need of freight services due to falling demand.

Stations
Singapore Overground serves Woodlands, Johor Bahru, Kranji, Sungei Kadut, Gali Batu, Bukit Panjang, Hillview, Bukit Timah, Buona Vista, Alexandra, Lower Delta, Keppel, East Tanjong Pagar, Marina Bay, Marine Parade, Telok Kurau, East Coast, Bedok, Tampines, School Island, Ulu Pandan, Jurong East, Jurong West & Joo Koon. It hopes to extend through Stevens, Little India, Marina Centre and Marina Bay in the near future.

Singapore Overground also plans to extend from Chiau Au via Hogwarts, Coney Island to Punggol. Construction began on 12 May 2014 and completed on 22 January 2017. In addition, the service was rerouted via SAFRA Tampines and New Tampines City in 2016, replacing the closed sections of Blk 140, Ashford and Tampines.

Lines

 * East-West Rail Line from Johor Bahru to School and School West - 25 stations (34.5km) - completed 1984. Every 5 minutes during peak hours, 12 minutes during off-peak hours.
 * Downtown Line from Johor Bahru to Marina Bay - 22 stations

Branding
For the trains and stations, the font is Johnston. The routes are orange roundel and dark blue bar. They are shown in dark orange stripe (blue for EWRL and pink for UPL).

Tunnels on Overground
When they first opened, they assigned tunnels (West Rail Line) -


 * 1) Kampong Bahru Road - Underpass
 * 2) Lower Delta Road - Underpass
 * 3) Alexandra Road - Underpass
 * 4) Commonwealth Avenue - Underpass
 * 5) Ulu Pandan Road - Underpass
 * 6) Woodlands Checkpoint - Underpass

On East Rail Line, there is a long tunnel linking the Railway Museum/Racecourse and Tampines. In 1980s also, more tunnels had been added, simply the Hillview Road, Choa Chu Kang Road, Stagmont Ring, Sungei Kadut Road and Kranji Way. Underpasses had been added on CTE, Kampong Bahru Road and more roads. It also added Ashford Tunnel and the frequent tunnels. At that time, the completion dates -
 * 20 December 2007 - East-West Rail Line between Tampines Primary School and Ashford
 * 26 January 2008 - East-West Rail Line between Tanjong Pagar and Tampines Primary School

Fares and ticketing
For fares and ticketing, they have used their EZ-Link cards and NETS FlashPay for their system. And also, the fare gates are largely wide fare gates.

Future Proposals (Overground Masterplan 2)

 * Downtown Line is the only line to have been originally Mass Rapid Transit, but now is from Changi South to Johor Bahru. It is 48km and has 40 stations - completed 2013. Direct services from Promenade to Johor Bahru will be likely and Promenade to Tampines. It is expected to have 3-cars, but they wanted 8-car trains. The Stage 2 and Stage 3 will follow suit after 2015. Now it will be from Marina Bay to Johor Bahru.
 * Ulu Pandan Line to be converted to Crossrail in 2016, once the Stage 2 and 3 is complete.
 * New trains (future stock) to be delivered in 2013, to replace Metro-Cammell (remaining) stock. It will also have business class, and first class while the rest are economy class. This would not be used in older cars.
 * Renovation and refurbishment of the remaining Overground stations (Lower Delta, Alexandra, Buona Vista, Bukit Timah, Bukit Panjang, Mandai, Kranji, Woodlands Checkpoint and Johor Bahru). Completion must be expected 2018.
 * Opening of Kwu Tong station, and it will be put on hold indefinitely. It is in the proposal stage.
 * Ashford Timothy Line extension to Simei East & Somapah. But Ashford Timothy Line is already merged with Tampines Line and Crossrail sections, by 2013.
 * Tampines Line, is handed over to Overground. It will be from Blk 140 (Tampines) to Big Mac Centre (Ang Mo Kio). Work will start in 2013 and will complete in 2020. This will be the next project.
 * There are now future proposals to extend East-West Rail Line from Johor Bahru to Senai Airport, via Skudai and Kempas which will take place around 2012, after the bilateral agreements have been finished.
 * There are plans to divert East-West Rail Line, via Sennett, ECP East, Seafood Centre, Parkland and Drift Centre. Construction can expect to begin in 20 February 2011 and to complete by 18 June 2013.

Scrapped Plans

 * While the section between Bukit Panjang and Bugis opens, the Overground trains were run parallel to North South Railway.
 * Extend East-West Rail Line to Simei East (Blk 140 - Simei East) and School East. Direct services will also be likely and also a Sembawang possible route (Woodlands Checkpoint - Admiralty Road West - Sembawang Park - Sembawang). Construction will begin in unspecified later date. It has been put on hold indefinitely.

Completed Projects (Overground Masterplan 1)

 * The link School - Adventure Centre has been opened in 5 March 2009.
 * Handing over Ashford Timothy Railway to Overground begins on September 13, 2008. This will close Blk 131 station as it is low-use station. It is renamed Ashford Timothy Line.
 * Acquisition of Hogwarts Express from December 2008. It has been rejected and still continuing to be an operator.
 * School station had been transferred to Hogwarts Express in 18 December 2008.

Safety
All tracks are fenced along their entire length (4.1m), to keep out unauthorised personnel. Level crossings are sometimes permitted and sensors they press to detect objects if they fall onto the track. They are grade-separated, with flyovers and/or tunnels.

Rolling Stock
The Class 124s, of which it is Metro-Cammell, were permanently withdrawn in 2017 and sold for scrap.

Past Trains

 * First Class Coach
 * Luggage Compartment Coach
 * Ordinary Class Coach
 * Economy Class Coach
 * Engineering Coach
 * KTM Class 1 2-6-4 Steam Locomotive
 * KTM Class 3 2-6-4 Steam Locomotive
 * KTM Class 8 2-6-2 Steam Locomotive
 * KTM Class 15 2-8-0 Steam Locomotive
 * 65 tons Breakdown Car
 * 4-6-4 Passenger Locomotive
 * KTM Class 15
 * KTM Class 17
 * KTM Class 18
 * KTM Class 20
 * KTM Class 21
 * KTM Class 22