Tanjong Pagar, the Rail Corridor and the RTS Link: Singapore’s railway, the back story

About Tanjong Pagar, the Rail Corridor and the RTS Link: Singapore’s railway, the back story

By the ULTIMATE Singapore Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Singapore’s main-line railway is a story told in three stations: Tanjong Pagar, the Art Deco terminus of 1932; Bukit Timah, the little station now at the heart of a green trail; and Woodlands North, where the new RTS Link to Johor Bahru will begin.

Tanjong Pagar station

For nearly eighty years, the trains to Malaysia began at Tanjong Pagar railway station, opened in 1932. Its Art Deco façade carries four white figures representing Agriculture, Commerce, Transport and Industry, and its great hall was decorated with murals of life in Malaya. The last train left on 30 June 2011, when the terminus moved to Woodlands near the border. The station is now a national monument, being integrated into the new Cantonment MRT station.

The Rail Corridor

The old railway line has become the Rail Corridor, a green path of about 24 kilometres that runs through the heart of the island, from Tanjong Pagar towards Woodlands, past old bridges and through cuttings full of birdsong. The Bukit Timah railway station of 1932, with its red-brick walls and tiled roof, has been restored as a place to rest along the way.

Where the trains to Kuala Lumpur once ran, joggers and cyclists now follow a green corridor across the island.

The RTS Link

The next chapter is the Johor Bahru–Singapore RTS Link, a rapid transit line of about four kilometres across the Strait of Johor, from Woodlands North in Singapore to Bukit Chagar in Johor Bahru, with customs and immigration for both countries at the station of departure. The authorities targeted the end of 2026 for its opening; in October 2026 the operator said passenger service is expected to start in February 2027. Until then, the KTM Shuttle Tebrau runs between Woodlands and JB Sentral. A high-speed railway to Kuala Lumpur was once planned, but the project was cancelled in 2021.

Our advice: walk or cycle a stretch of the Rail Corridor in the early morning, starting at the old Bukit Timah station, and bring water and insect repellent. For Johor Bahru, check the latest RTS Link news before you travel.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Tanjong Pagar, the Rail Corridor and the RTS Link: Singapore’s railway, the back story before you go.