MR SHAMSUL Bahari became somewhat of a celebrity on Thursday evening, as hundreds of visitors swamped the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station on its last day of operations.

The station manager, 43, who's worked at the station since 1996, was signing autographs for the people who came up to him bearing souvenirs -- from coffee mugs to PVC folders with images of the station imprinted on them. 'Must be more than 1,000 people already since this morning,' Mr Bahari said, smiling. 'No, my hands not tired yet!'

Around the station, shutterbugs scattered themselves, adding to the sense of occasion, bulbs flashing at every corner of the 79-year-old KTM Railway Station. Music blared through stereos brought by visitors; necks craned behind iron grilles that separated the ticketing booth from the train platforms. On Friday, the land on which the station sits will revert to Singapore.

Retired station manager Sukhairi Ahmad Junid, who arrived on the last incoming train at 6pm together with 40 other retired KTM staff, said he was sad to see the station stop operations. 'We worked here, we ate here, we were happy here,' said the 59-year-old.

Visitors included also Mr Phill Seah, a tourism consultant in his 50s, who, like many others, said he came by out of curiosity. 'I just want to see what the fuss is about,' he said.

University student Denise Chua, 20, who came with a group of 15 friends, described the final send-off was an event 'not to be missed'. She said: 'We want to be part of this history-making moment.'

The last passenger train will leave the station at 10pm. The Sultan of Johor is expected to drive the final train into Malaysia at 11pm.

Railway station closes chapter
By Saifulbahri Ismail | Posted: 30 June 2011 2008 hrs


SINGAPORE: A historic chapter closed on Thursday at the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.

Seven trains, bound for Malaysia, made their final journey from the station on Thursday.

Many people flocked to the station to take a last train ride from the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.

One of them is 64-year-old Mohd Jani Abdul Manap, who arrived in Singapore from Kuala Lumpur to do just that.

Mr Mohd Jani said the station brings back fond memories.

"When I was a boy, my father was a customs officer near Tanjong Pagar Road, it's nearby this railway station," he said.

"My brother and I used to play here. This is part of our playground - we used to catch spiders.

"I came here all the way with my brother... to wish farewell to Tanjong Pagar Railway Station."

Tickets for all five express trains have been sold out since late May.

However, passengers without advance tickets still queued up at the ticket counter for the shuttle trains at 7.15 am and 6.55 pm.

All food stalls have been vacated.

Many who visited the station on Thursday said they will miss the station's neo-classical facade and art deco features.

Passenger Robert Hoyes-Cock said: "What I'll miss most, is that I'm currently living in Portsdown Road area, and actually I can hear the train every night when I go to sleep.

"So, it will be a bit strange not hearing the train anymore in my neighbourhood".

Meanwhile, a Facebook page called 'The Last Train Into Tanjong Pagar' has been set up.

It has accumulated more than 600 fans since it was created earlier this month.

Facebook page creator Jerome Lim said: "It was for me a personal journey because what I wanted to do was to have a last homecoming back into Tanjong Pagar.

"There's always a kind of romance associated with train rides.

"I guess that's a throwback maybe to the glory days of train travel, maybe in the 30s. (For) Tanjong Pagar, it has this huge great hall, and I think that in itself, is an experience you won't get again with the train station moving to Woodlands Train Checkpoint".

The man who will be the last to leave the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station is station manager Mohd Ayob Embong.

"Of course, I'll be sad. All the staff, I know very well," he said.

"The thing I will miss most is this building. I have been here for six years inside this building every day from 2.30 in the morning until 11 pm."

All 91 staff members of the Malayan railway took the last train out at 11 pm.

At the stroke of midnight, Singapore took ownership of the station.

kondensierte Grüße, Stefan


Kondenslok.de (temporär offline) + Industrial Railways of Indonesia SIG (fc)
Wer Rechtschreibfehler findet, darf sie behalten. Wer sich über Signaturen aufregt, hat sonst nix zu sagen.

Chug your way to the railway tracks at Tanjong Pagar
Posted: 01 July 2011 1633 hrs
Night scene of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station in Singapore after it closed on June 30. (Photo by Hester Tan)

Photos 1 of 1

Night scene of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station in Singapore after it closed on June 30. (Photo by Hester Tan)


Related News
• Photo Gallery: Farewell Tanjong Pagar Railway Station


Singapore: The Tanjong Pagar and Bukit Timah Railway Stations are now shuttered, but they are anything but quiet.

Works are being carried out for the removal of furniture and equipment by KTM and its tenants as well as maintenance works.

As for the railway tracks, they are open from today for those who want to take a walk through the past.

During two weeks from 1-17 July, the entire line of railway tracks, except for some localised areas, will be open says the Singapore Land Authority. This is in response to public requests for an opportunity to trek along and experience the tracks.

After 17 July, only a 3km stretch of railway tracks from Rifle Range Road to the Rail Mall will continue to be open to the public. This will be until the end of July.

As agreed with Malaysia, Singapore which now owns the land will remove the tracks and other structures of KTM (Keretapi Tanah Melayu) railway and hand them back to Malaysia.

As there may be some removal and maintenance works around the various railway sites, and with some parts of the tracks narrow and rough, members of the public are reminded to be careful when walking along the tracks.

Cordons will be placed around work areas that will be carried out at the Bukit Timah Railway Station and the railway crossings at Kranji Road, Sungei Kadut Avenue, Choa Chu Kang Road, Stagmont Ring and Gombak Drive.

Works to remove the railway tracks along the rest of the former railway line, except for the 3km stretch from Rifle Range Road to the Rail Mall, will commence from 18 July along with the clearance of minor buildings, sleepers, tracks, cables, gates, posts and debris around the various sites from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands.

Other items to be removed include railway equipment, such as signal lights, level crossings, controllers and traffic lights, and all removal works should finish by the end of 2011.

As for the next stage of life for the former railway lands, the Urban Redevelopment Authority is studying the possibility of marrying development and greenery to maintain a continuous green link along the rail corridor without affecting the development potential of the lands.

The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) has agreed to allow the public to access and trek along the railway tracks between July 1 st and 17.

For two weeks the public will have the opportunity to trek along the entire line of railway tracks except for some localised areas.

After July 17, a three kilometre stretch from Rifle Range Road to the Rail Mall will continue to be open to the public till 31 Jul 2011.

The SLA also advises that members of the public should exercise caution when walking along the tracks as some areas are narrow and rough.

The Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and Bukit Timah Railway Station will be closed temporarily to facilitate the moving out of the furniture and equipment by the KTM and its tenants.

Minor works will also be carried out at the Bukit Timah Railway Station and the railway crossings at Kranji Road, Sungei Kadut Avenue, Choa Chu Kang Road, Stagmont Ring and Gombak Drive. Members of the public should avoid these work areas which will be cordoned off.

Why I drove the last train out

July 01, 2011 Friday, 10:00 PM

His Royal Highness, Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar of Johor, on why he asked to drive the last KTM train out of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.
WHEN I found out last year that Tanjong Pagar Railway Station would be closed, I expressed my desire of driving the last train out of Singapore to the KTM chairman.
What the governments do has got nothing to do with me. To me, it is a sentimental matter.
It was my great grandfather, the late Sultan Ibrahim, who opened the Causeway, designed for both road and rail links. He paved the way, literally, for the first train to rumble into Singapore from Malaysia back in 1923.
I felt it was only appropriate for me, as the ruler of Johor, to drive the last train out.
Besides trains, I fly jets, helicopters, and I sail my own yacht. I am never a boring person. Everything to me is a challenge. I always like to find something new to do. Every day, I look at the weather and think to myself, what should I do today?
So when the KTM chairman said OK, the train instructor was sent to my palace.
There was no train simulator. I had to study the diagrams of the controls and learn about the mechanics of how a train moves. After that, we started the practical lessons.
The first time I sat at the controls, it felt a little funny because there is no steering wheel. There is only the throttle and the brake.
It was a little scary too because, unlike a car, you cannot swerve when you’re driving a train. If there is something on the tracks, you cannot avoid it. You will hit it. It’s not like a helicopter, where I can go up and down.
What helps is that there is a note, or manifest, that the station master hands you before you leave the station, and which you need to sign for. It describes the route you would be taking, what the speed limits are, where the crossings are, etc.
As the lessons progressed, I learnt one other thing: You cannot think only for yourself when you drive a train.
You need to feel it. You need to feel its length, its weight, the momentum and the gradient you are on.
I drove around to places like Negri Sembilan, Kluang and KL, after I received my locomotive driving licence.
Thursday night was the first time I set foot into Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. That’s because when I come to Singapore, I usually drive or take my yacht.
I was told not to go more than 60km per hour, because these are old tracks and they could be a little unsteady.
There were two safety drivers with me at the controls. One of them was my instructor, because I always feel more comfortable when he is beside me.
I also brought my iPad onto the train because I always like to find out where I am and how fast I am going (Yes, you can do that with an iPad!).
I felt a little sad that it was a night journey and that I couldn’t see what was around me as I drove.
But I also felt very honoured, because there were so many passengers. They are a testament to the bond of friendship between the people of Johor and Singapore.
I knew many of them felt sad about the station. Some of them feel that Singapore is developing too fast. But I don’t think so.
We cannot control development. It happens at its own pace. But we must always know our history.
In Malaysia and Singapore, when we go to school, we do not learn about ourselves, but about the world.
You ask a Singaporean on the street: Where is Kazakhstan? Or, say, where is Cape Town? He will probably know.
But Segamat, Malaysia? Probably not.
So this is the message I want to say to Singaporeans: Learn about the history we share.
More than anything else, that is why I asked to drive the train.

kondensierte Grüße, Stefan


Kondenslok.de (temporär offline) + Industrial Railways of Indonesia SIG (fc)
Wer Rechtschreibfehler findet, darf sie behalten. Wer sich über Signaturen aufregt, hat sonst nix zu sagen.

SINGAPORE: Some 200 people flocked to the Bukit Timah Railway station on Saturday to reminisce Singapore's railway past. This, on the first weekend after Singapore took over all railway land south of Woodlands, following a land swop deal with Malaysia.

The Bukit Timah railway station was a hive of activity. Everything there - even the toilet - became a photo opportunity.

Singaporeans and tourists alike - were there to reminisce.

"Now the land belongs back to us again. So it's something for us to remember. And we never had the opportunity to walk before," said one of the people there.

The Nature Society of Singapore also organised a four-hour trek for some thirty people.

Benjamin Ho, a member of the Nature Society of Singapore, said: "We hope that members of nature society as well as their friends are able to come here, to know, to appreciate the nature surroundings and the scenery and also take in natural ambience of the place, because the flora and fauna here are quite extensive, and the scenery is quite different from what you see in Singapore."

The trek started from Bukit Timah station to the Rail Mall - a three-kilometre stretch which the Singapore Land Authority said will be opened to the public till the end of July. Other stretches will be opened till July 17.

Some business owners at the Rail Mall are hoping the station nearby will be retained.

Lawrence Lim, the owner of Hooked Restaurant, said: "Ever since the restaurant opened four years ago, the rail service has been there. So we have grown used to its presence. Every afternoon we see the train pass by. So in a way, we feel a sense of loss if the train is no longer there."

The public is advised to exercise caution when walking along the tracks, which SLA said can be narrow and rough at certain locations.

Singapore will remove the tracks and ancillary structures of the KTM railway and hand them over to Malaysia by December 31.

SINGAPORE: Minister of State for National Development Tan Chuan-Jin said the authorities will extensively engage various stakeholders and the community in the redevelopment of the KTM railway tracks. He added that the work will take a few years.

Speaking on the sidelines of a photography competition organised by the National Parks Board, Brigadier-General Tan told reporters there will be regular meetings with stakeholders. These include schools and non-governmental organisations like nature and heritage societies.

He said this is to understand their concerns and engage the community.

BG Tan said: "For example, we will be keen to talk to individuals, architects, students - whether from arts schools or even from schools straddling the railway line. It will be interesting to see how they envision different parts of that being developed in different ways and eventually, we are looking at that developing. And how do we get the architects to factor in these considerations.

"We met with various stakeholders - Nature Society of Singapore, Heritage Society, some of the academics who were active in this area. Even the Green Corridor - the founder. I thought it was a very positive dialogue. From the onset through the URA, we have been discussing with NParks [and other] interest groups to really understand their concerns.

"And I think it's about partnerships, because they have walked the ground...it's about specific perspectives, about different segments along the way. It is very important to listen to things that we are not very clear about, or we are unaware of."

kondensierte Grüße, Stefan


Kondenslok.de (temporär offline) + Industrial Railways of Indonesia SIG (fc)
Wer Rechtschreibfehler findet, darf sie behalten. Wer sich über Signaturen aufregt, hat sonst nix zu sagen.