Scheduled closures are sometimes necessary: Jeffrey Siow on Jan 25 Bukit Panjang LRT closure
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The Bukit Panjang LRT renewal programme is to enable the migration of the system to an upgraded operations control centre.
ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO
- Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) will have a full-day closure on January 25, 2026, to migrate the system to a refurbished operations control centre.
- BPLRT renewal, 88% complete as of November, includes a new signalling system since November 8th, fleet refresh in October, and power rail replacement which will be completed by late 2026.
- Since 2018, BPLRT has undergone substantial upgrades to address reliability issues, despite challenges of working with the existing infrastructure and ensuring that train operations continue.
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SINGAPORE – Scheduled closures are sometimes necessary and safer for workers to carry out complicated tasks, said Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow on Dec 29, ahead of a full-day closure of Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) on Jan 25.
This is to enable the migration of the system to an upgraded operations control centre, which oversees real-time train operations, network safety and efficiency.
Mr Siow said in a Facebook post on Dec 29 after visiting the BPLRT depot that works that would usually need 10 nights of two-hour windows can be completed in a single full-day closure.
The acting minister said that the BPLRT renewal programme is what engineers call a brownfield project – involving the upgrade of an ageing system that is already in daily use.
He added that the work in such projects is “especially challenging”, given that teams must work within tight spaces, fixed layouts and limited time.
While such upgrades are less visible than building a new line from scratch, maintaining an existing system is just as important and often more demanding, said Mr Siow.
Noting that the BPLRT is “in a much better place today”, Mr Siow credited transport workers for their sustained effort from 2018, as 88 per cent of these renewal works have been completed as at November.
Since Nov 8, the BPLRT has been operating fully on a new communications-based train control signalling system
What remains is the replacement of the power rail, which supplies electricity to the trains. Around a fifth of the work has been carried out, with completion slated for the fourth quarter of 2026.
He added that the BPLRT’s renewal programme was “not a simple fix”, given that major systems – such as signalling, power rails, trains and the operations control centre – had to be replaced while the line continued running every day. Most work could be done only in very short windows of about two hours each night after service ended, said Mr Siow.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced on Dec 26 that the BPLRT will be closed for a full day on Jan 25, 2026, to facilitate the migration of the system to an upgraded operations control centre.
Passengers can continue their journeys by taking existing bus services or boarding an LRT shuttle – which runs in the direction of BPLRT Service B from Choa Chu Kang to Bukit Panjang, via Petir, every five to 15 minutes.
Noting that the end of the renewal works is in sight, Mr Siow said he was grateful to passengers for their patience and understanding.
The 26-year-old network has a long history of reliability issues, with two recent major disruptions in July across all 13 stations
Many of the system’s core components were reaching the end of life when the decision to upgrade the line was made in 2018, said Mr Siow.
The latest rail reliability figures published by LTA show a drop in performance as BPLRT trains clocked 232,000 car-km between delays in October
