M’sia Shared Photos of JB-SG MRT Line That’s Reportedly on Track to be Completed by 2026

Even if you’re not an avid JB-shopping hobbyist, you’ve probably heard about the fabled Singapore-Johor Bahru train line that has never seemed to have taken shape despite numerous promises.

Even a cat knows that:

Before you brush it off as a myth, though, there’s been a new tangible development—images of the line in construction were shared on Facebook by Malaysian rail company MRT Corp, showing that construction was going smoothly.

870 Metres of Construction So Far

The Facebook post made on 28 February showed the ongoing construction of the Rapid Transit System (RTS) link marine viaduct, and shared that approximately 870 metres of it were up. 

The bridge crosses the Strait of Tebrau, connecting the shores of Singapore and Malaysia. 

Apparently, the railway system was said to be 30% complete as of January this year, but we finally have pictures now to prove it’s indeed coming.

It is set to connect the Woodlands North LRT station in Singapore and the Bukit Chagar Station in JB. 

What’s The Significance of the Link? 

If you’ve ever had the pleasure of driving across the Causeway to Malaysia, you’ll know that it’s always jam-packed, no matter the time of the day.

The new LRT system of the RTS link seeks to remedy that—it’s able to serve up to 10,000 commuters, hopefully easing the traffic on the Woodlands Causeway and Tuas Second Link Bridge. 

Travellers on the RTS link will also enjoy greater convenience: they’ll only need to clear immigration once, at the point of departure. So if you successfully go through customs at the Woodlands station, there’s no need to queue again for customs when you reach Malaysia. 

Reportedly, construction is on track to be smoothly completed by 2026, so before then, we’ll just have to keep getting up early to queue at the Causeway for those JB shopping discounts.

Joint Company Formed for Project

For the RTS link project, a joint company was formed between Malaysia’s Prasarana Malaysia Bhd and Singapore’s SMRT Corporation Ltd, named RTS Operations Pte Ltd (RTSO). The company will also later be responsible for operating the LRT service.

On 3 March, MRT Corp shared additional pictures on Facebook of board members of RTSO visiting the project sites, including the Maintenance Depot site, the Immigration, Customs and Quarantine (ICQ) Complex site and the Marine Viaduct. 

You can follow their Facebook Page on the development here, just like how people would follow the construction of their BTO flats.