The New Year is almost upon us, and you know what that means!
Reader: Drinking with your friends and having large parties on New Year’s Eve!
Sure, except you can’t drink in public past 10.30pm and social gatherings will be restricted to eight.
Reader: Why do you always bring me down?
Hey, we should be thankful we can have gatherings and celebrations at all, as residents of some countries have had to cancel their Christmas plans due to an escalating Covid-19 outbreak.
If you’re planning to have a small get-together at your friend’s house and drink till the cows come home, you may not have to shell out an exorbitant amount for a cab.
Everything About the Extended Bus & MRT Services on New Year’s Eve
Good news for those planning to stay out late on New Year’s Eve: some bus and train services will be extended on New Year’s Eve to allow commuters to return home.
Train services on five MRT lines will be extended on 31 Dec.
NSL & EWL
The last trains on the North-South Line and the East-West Line will depart from City Hall at 1am on 1 Jan 2021.
These trains will terminate at Marina South Pier, Jurong East, Pasir Ris and Tuas Link.
CCL
As for the Circle Line, the last trains will depart from Dhoby Ghaut at 12.27am towards Harbourfront.
Going the other way, the last train will depart from Harbourfront at 12.24am.
NEL
Trains on the North-East Line (NEL) will also operate for at least an extra hour, with the last train on the NEL departing HabourFront Station at 1am, headed towards Punggol.
Conversely, the last train towards HarbourFront will leave Punggol Station at 12.32am.
The Sengkang-Punggol Light Rail Transit service will also operate until the last NEL trains arrive at their respective town centre stations.
DTL
Similarly, the operational hours of the Downtown Line (DTL) will be extended by at least an hour.
The last train departing from Bukit Panjang Station for the Expo Station will leave at 12.34am.
The last train from Expo Station towards Bukit Panjang will depart at the same time.
Bus Services Extension
The operational hours of some bus services will also be extended to complement the extension of train services.
The last bus timings for the following SBS buses will range from 1.25am to 2.05am:
- 60A
- 63M
- 181
- 222,
- 225G
- 228
- 229
- 232
- 238
- 240
- 241
- 243G
- 261
- 269
- 291
- 292
- 293
- 315
- 325
- 410W
- 804
- 812
Meanwhile, the last buses for the following SMRT bus services will leave Bukit Panjang interchange at 1.50am:
- 920
- 922
- 973A
And the last buses for the following services will depart Choa Chu Kang interchange at 2.05am:
- 300
- 301
- 302
- 307
- and 983A
As for Sembawang interchange, the last buses for these two services will leave at 2am:
- 859A
- 883A
Additionally, the last buses for four services at Woodlands interchange will depart at 1.55am:
- 901
- 911
- 912
- 913
Celebrate Responsibly
While we’d all like to dance and drink away the troubles of 2020, we should remember that the coronavirus is still on the loose.
Covid-19 cases have dwindled significantly in Singapore lately, but a little complacency could easily lead to a fresh wave of infections.
Do remember that consuming alcoholic beverages in public past 10.30pm is prohibited, so if you’re planning to drink into the night, please do so at home.
Fortunately, you’ll be able to have social gatherings of up to 8 participants on New Year’s Eve, as the country will shift to Phase 3 on 28 Dec.
Households will be able to receive up to 8 visitors at any one time, once we’re in Phase 3.
So, we can certainly celebrate, but let’s do so responsibly.
Featured Image: Artorn Thongtukit / Shutterstock.com
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