SINGAPORE — Three new MRT stations on the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) and Downtown Line (DTL) — Bedok South, Sungei Bedok and Xilin — will open for passenger service on December 26.

The first two stations are part of the TEL stage 5 (TEL5), while Xilin MRT station is part of the Downtown Line 3 Extension (DTL3e).

“These new stations will stitch together two major train corridors, give commuters in the East new routes, and faster journeys,” said Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow at the Singapore Urban Mobility Week today.

Illustrating this, Siow pointed out that residents in the eastern region will be able to take the TEL continuously into the city centre, up north to Woodlands, and soon, conveniently across the Johor Strait into Malaysia.

The new stations are also expected to enhance access to employment nodes such as Changi Business Park and Tampines Regional Centre.

Meanwhile, Sungei Bedok interchange will also enable commuters to transfer between the TEL and DTL, providing more travel options and strengthening the resilience of our rail network.

LTA said that the opening of TEL5 will put over 240,000 households within a 10-minute walk of a TEL station, while the opening of DTL3e will see 220,000 households within a 10-minute walk of a DTL station.

It projected savings of between 10 and 25 minutes for commuters travelling between the eastern region and other parts of Singapore.