The Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced on Monday (28 November) that the Tampines Concourse bus interchange will start operations on 18 December.
The new bus interchange will supplement the existing Tampines bus interchange and will be connected through a 250-m barrier-free sheltered walkway. It will be served by the existing services 18 and 39 as well as new services, 129 and 127, LTA informed.
The operating route of Bus Service 969 will be altered to call at three additional pair of bus stops along Tampines Ave 9 and Tampines Concourse.
Service 969 operates from 5.30am to 11.45pm on weekdays and Saturdays (excluding public holidays) and 5.45am to 11.45pm on Sundays and public holidays.
On services 18 and 39 LTA informed that it will be changed to operate from the new Tampines Concourse Bus Interchange, which is an extension of the existing Tampines Bus Interchange.
Service 18 will also call at a pair of new bus stops along Tampines Central 1, outside/opposite the Tampines Bus Interchange.
The operating hours for both services remain unchanged.
A netizen commented about this alteration,
Timothy Shiying : Good. Then service 46 can take over 39 slot, 23 can take over 18 slot. The interchange already jammed during morning peak. The walkway cannot take it during morning peak hours. The interchange looks so crampy filled with buses everytime. There is virtually 10-13 pax boarding at Tampines Bus Interchange for service 39. Should have brought service 46 over, there is 12 pax boarding over.
And the new service 129 will operate between the new Tampines Concourse Bus Interchange and the St Michael’s Bus Terminal via Tampines Avenue 1, Bartley MRT Station, Braddell MRT Station, Toa Payoh MRT Station.
This complements the rail network coverage and helps enhance inter-town connectivity, LTA wrote.
The service will also provide connection to schools such as St Hilda’s Secondary School, East View Primary School and Temasek Polytechnic.
It will operate daily from 5.45am to 11.30pm from both Tampines Concourse Bus Interchange and St Michael’s Bus Terminal.
Three netizens’ commented on this new service,
Muhd Sofee Hadi : Finally a bus uses the Bartley flyover. Shortcut towards Serangoon area.
Amir Hamzah : Finally skipping the towns with the use of Bartley Rd East. Also help ease crowd on 59.
汤富盛 : It serves as short cut route of bus 21 between St Michael to Tampines and bus 28 Toa Payoh to Tampines.
The other new service, 127, will provide a direct link between Tampines Bus Interchange and Tampines Industrial Avenue 5 to enhance connectivity to housing developments along Tampines Concourse, Tampines Avenue 9 and 10, LTA stated.
It will operate daily from 5.30am to 11.30pm from Tampines Bus Interchange. Service 127A, which operates from Tampines Bus Interchange to Tampines Avenue 9, will operate from 11.45pm to 12.45am daily.
Tampines Concourse Bus Interchange is located northwest of the Tampines Town Centre, in close proximity to commercial buildings and residential developments along Tampines Concourse.
It is connected to the existing interchange by a 250-metre barrier-free sheltered walkway and the concourse area will also have priority queues with seats for the elderly and disabled.