PUBLISHED ONJuly 04, 2026 2:30 AMUPDATEDJuly 04, 2026 3:36 AMBYSean LerThe MRT's Circle Line has come a "full circle" with the opening of Keppel, Cantonment and Prince Edward Road stations — and is expected to benefit more than 10,000 commuters, who will enjoy shorter train rides, said Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow at the Circle Line 6's (CCL6) opening ceremony on Saturday (July 4).
"So today, finally, people can stop asking the Land Transport Authority (LTA) why the Circle Line is not a circle," the acting minister quipped, as he recalled the challenges of the CCL6 project, which has taken more than 30 years in the making.
Siow explained that although CCL6 was only announced in 2013, it was "in the original design". However, the project could not start until land became available.
For example, Cantonment station, a 28m-deep underground station located beneath the former Tanjong Pagar railway station, could only be announced when the former railway station and tracks were returned to Singapore in 2011.
Then, there is Keppel station, which sits adjacent to PSA Keppel Terminal, which was announced only after the Government firmed up plans to move the terminal to Tuas.
"It was thus only in 2013 that we announced CCL6 in the Land Transport Master Plan," the acting minister explained.
But the challenges did not end there.
The acting minister noted that delivering the CCL6 project has been "one of the most difficult engineering projects" ever completed by LTA.
He shared that the project team had to remove previously undiscovered coastal structures under the port terminal before the project could start.
And for Cantonment station, LTA's engineers had to tunnel just seven metres beneath the former railway station, so as not to damage the nearly 100-year-old structure which was gazetted as a national monument in 2011.
CCL6, which runs under the live Keppel Viaduct, also required the project team to carry out its work carefully, so that road traffic will not be affected.
The innovations don't stop there.
On July 2, LTA announced improvements to the digital displays at CCL stations following public feedback.
A bigger font is now used, while service icons have been removed. These allow the wayfinding display systems to show more prominently the next interchange or terminal station of a train.
The interchange stations — there are 12 in total — and terminal stations act as markers to indicate the direction the train goes, and are key to having a smooth journey on the CCL.
@asiaone Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow, who officiated at the opening ceremony of the MRT's Circle Line 6 (CCL6) stations on Saturday (July 4), said the three stations will also open up the next chapter of Singapore - connecting more opportunities, including more homes, more jobs, and more community spaces. #sgnews #Singapore #PublicTransport #MRT #Trains ♬ original sound - AsiaOne
As the three CCL6 stations hold their public preview event on Saturday, Siow, who officiated at the opening ceremony also reflected on his first interview with the media as Acting Minister for Transport.
"Way back last July, I did my first interview as the Minister for Transport. Somewhat guilelessly, I spoke about how I hoped to make Singaporeans love and take pride in our public transport.
"I still hold on to this hope. After all, if Londoners can take pride in their Tube, maybe we can also love our MRT a bit more," he said.
Explaining his belief, the acting minister stated his belief that public transport is "inextricably woven" into the history and fabric of a city, saying it is "part of our collective memories".
Recalling how members of the public urged him to preserve some of the first-generation MRT trains, when they were retired in September last year, Siow said that such memories matter.
"Where we can, we should take pride in them, and take every opportunity to honour them in our history," he added.
Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow, in his first sit-down interview with the media on last Wednesday (June 11), said that the government must make sure that for public transport, they run the system well - as well as they have run the air and sea systems - so that Singaporeans can “take pride in it”. Siow compared Singapore’s transport system to other parts of the world, saying that while it is not perfect, it’s “fair to say that we are doing a good job here”. The acting minister, a former second permanent secretary at the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) before entering politics, also shared with the media his thoughts about taking over the transport portfolio. #sgnews #singapore #publictransport
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