The Land Transport Authority (LTA) yesterday invited members of the public to suggest official names for three stations on the Circle Line 6 - Keppel, Cantonment and Prince Edward.

The names must fit one of several criteria, which include helping commuters to easily identify where the stations are located, and illustrating the histories and heritage of the locations.

The names can also reflect Singapore's multiracial and multicultural identity.

Stations, however, are not to be named after public structures or commercial and residential developments, the LTA said.

Naming exercises were previously conducted for new MRT stations on the Circle, Downtown and Thomson-East Coast lines.

This is intended to give the public, especially the communities living and working around the stations, an opportunity to determine this permanent aspect of the stations' identities.

Suggestions can be sent to the LTA at http://www.lta.gov.sg

Other than new names, people can propose to keep the current working names, along with a brief rationale to explain their submissions.

The deadline to send in suggestions is June 18.

A shortlist will be drawn up before the LTA sends a final list of names for endorsement by the Street and Building Names Board.

A public polling exercise will be conducted later this year to determine the final station names.

Keppel, Cantonment and Prince Edward stations on the 4km-long Circle Line 6 will close the loop for the line, which opened in 2009, by connecting the HarbourFront and Marina Bay stations.

The Circle Line 6 will enable commuters to enjoy a direct route between areas in the west, such as Pasir Panjang and Kent Ridge, and the Central Business District.

When the stations are completed in 2025, the Circle Line will have 33 stations, including 12 interchange stations.