Tunnelling works for Circle Line 6 (CCL6)—the final stage of the orbital Circle Line (CCL)—began on 25 July 2019 with the launch of a tunnel boring machine at Keppel station.
According to the Land Transport Authority (LTA), the machine will tunnel from Keppel to the existing HarbourFront station. Two other tunnelling machines are expected to be launched in September and October this year.
The works package includes the construction of three stations—Keppel, Cantonment and Prince Edward Road stations—which began in 2017, the expansion of Kim Chuan Depot to support up to 133 trains, and an above-ground bus depot that can accommodate 550 buses.
The new stations will close the loop for the CCL by connecting HarbourFront Station to Marina Bay Station. The entire orbital line will have 33 stations with 12 interchanges to connect to all existing MRT lines and the future Thomson-East Coast Line.
The LTA said work on the 4-kilometre CCL6 is progressing on track, with 66 per cent of earth retaining and stabilising structure works being completed, the Straits Times reports.
In preparation of the opening of the CCL6 in 2025, upgrading works of the decade-old CCL are underway to support the larger network. These upgrades include the line’s signalling system, power supply system (including a load break switch at substations), and communications system for more seamless real-time communication between individual stations and the Operations Control Centre. Most of the work will be done during non-operating hours.
“As we are working on a ‘live’ railway system, we will work closely with SMRT to put mitigating measures in place to ensure daily operations will not be impacted,” said LTA chief executive Ngien Hoon Ping.
LTA will also be buying 12 new trains from French supplier Alstom, which will be delivered progressively from 2024, increasing the total CCL fleet to 87 trains. — Construction+ Online
