Full-day shutdown on Bukit Panjang LRT for renewal works on Sept 20 and Sept 27

SINGAPORE – Train service on the Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) line will be suspended on Sept 20 and 27 for the final stage of renewal works.

In a Facebook post on Aug 27, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said the full-day closures on the two days will allow for engineering works and reduce the need for additional service adjustments.

This will be the last of the planned service closures before the BPLRT renewal programme is completed by the end of 2026, LTA added.

Affected commuters can take regular bus services 922, 972 and 963, as well as shuttle bus B*, which will operate at intervals of between five and ten minutes.

The shuttle bus service will go from BPLRT Service B from Choa Chu Kang to Bukit Panjang, and past Petir LRT station, according to an image in the post. Standard LRT fees will be charged for the service.

The renewal programme for BPLRT includes a fully upgraded power supply system and upgraded communications-based train control signalling system – similar to that used on the MRT lines.

It also features upgrades to the Operations Control Centre and replacement of the power rail, which supplies electricity to the trains.

Earlier service adjustments were needed to allow the renewal programme to be carried out, including the ending of services at 10.30pm from Thursdays to Sundays, from Nov 14 to Oct 31, 2025.

This was to facilitate the upgrading of the BPLRT’s signalling system, and the testing of the new and retrofitted light-rail vehicles.

On Jan 25, there was a scheduled full-day closure to enable the migration of the system to an upgraded operations control centre, which oversees real-time train operations, network safety and efficiency.

The 27-year-old network has a long history of reliability issues, with two major disruptions in July across all 13 stations.

On July 19, train service stalled for almost two hours after a power fault crippled the entire line.

Less than a month earlier, on July 3, a power trip resulted in a three-hour-long service disruption.

Both incidents were linked to the newly installed Power Scada system, which plays a key role in monitoring and controlling power distribution across the LRT line.

Esther Loi is a journalist at The Straits Times, where she covers transport issues.