Tower Transit Bus Service 97 is a trunk service plying between Tengah and Marina Centre, passing through Bukit Batok Rd, Jurong Town Hall Rd, AYE, Alexandra, HarbourFront, Keppel Rd, Robinson Rd, Bayfront and Suntec City. Its express variant is Service 97e.
Service 97 was extended to Tengah Int from 8 Mar 2026.
97
Note:
- No boarding and alighting at Marina Centre Terminal
The last alighting stop is at: Promenade Stn/Pan Pacific, Raffles Blvd
The first boarding stop is at Aft S’pore Flyer, Raffles Ave.
| Route Overview | ||||||||||||
Route  |
Tengah Bus Interchange ↔ Marina Centre Bus Terminal | |||||||||||
| Passes Through | Bukit Batok Rd, Jurong Town Hall Rd, AYE, Telok Blangah Rd, Keppel Rd, Bayfront Ave | |||||||||||
| Route Length | Towards Marina Centre: 25.3 km | Towards Tengah: 26.9 km | ||||||||||
| Travelling Time | 85 mins | |||||||||||
| Operator Information | ||||||||||||
| BCM Route Package | Bulim Bus Package | |||||||||||
| Current Operator | Tower Transit Singapore Pte Ltd (Tower Transit Singapore) |
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| Current Depot | Bulim Bus Depot | |||||||||||
| Current Fleet | Single-deck & Double-deck buses | |||||||||||
| Operating Hours | ||||||||||||
| Departure Times from Tengah | Daily | |||||||||||
| 05:20 – 23:30 | ||||||||||||
| Departure Times from Raffles Ave (Aft S’pore Flyer) | Daily | |||||||||||
| 06:00 – 23:50 | ||||||||||||
| Operating Frequency | ||||||||||||
| From Tengah |
6:30am–8.30am | 8.31am–4.59pm | 5.00pm–7.00pm | After 7.00pm | ||||||||
| Weekdays | 12 – 13 mins | 8 – 16 mins | 9 – 15 mins | 16 – 23 mins | ||||||||
| Saturdays | 13 – 15 mins | 12 – 16 mins | 15 mins | 14 – 22 mins | ||||||||
| Sundays / Public Holidays | 15 – 16 mins | 14 – 16 mins | 15 mins | 15 – 25 mins | ||||||||
| From Raffles Ave | 6:30am–8.30am | 8.31am–4.59pm | 5.00pm–7.00pm | After 7.00pm | ||||||||
| Weekdays | 13 mins | 10 – 15 mins | 11 – 14 mins | 14 – 24 mins | ||||||||
| Saturdays | 14 – 17 mins | 12 – 17 mins | 15 – 16 mins | 14 – 25 mins | ||||||||
| Sundays / Public Holidays | 17 mins | 14 – 17 mins | 15 mins | 15 – 25 mins | ||||||||
| Fare Information |
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| Fare | Charges regular distance fares |
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Service 97 is a trunk route between Tengah and the Downtown Core, via Jurong East, Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE) and Telok Blangah Road. The route serves as a link between Tengah, Jurong East, HarbourFront and many parts of the City, including, Shenton Way, Downtown, Bayfront and Suntec City. Its express variant, Limited-Stop Express Bus Service 97e, operates during the peak hours and skips stops along Jurong Town Hall Road and AYE.
In March 2026, the service was extended to Tengah from Jurong East under the Land Transport Authority’s Bus Connectivity Enhancement Programme (BCEP).
Trivia: This is one of the few trunk routes to intersect its own route in either direction (at Suntec City)
MRT Stations Served
- EW24NS1 Jurong East
- CC27 Labrador Park
- CC28 Telok Blangah
- NE1CC29 HarbourFront
- EW15 Tanjong Pagar
- TE19 Shenton Way
- DT17 Downtown
- NS27CE2TE20 Marina Bay
- CE1DT16 Bayfront
- CC3 Esplanade
- CC4DT15 Promenade
Route Variant
- Express 97e: Tengah Int ⇆ Marina Centre Ter
Weekday Morning & Evening Peak Hours
Gallery
Poster Gallery
Gallery (F1 Diversion):
Operator History
- 1983 – 2001: Singapore Bus Services Ltd
- 2001 – 11 Jun 2016: SBS Transit Ltd
- 12 Jun 2016 – Present: Tower Transit Singapore Pte Ltd
Route History
- 1983 (29 Aug): Introduced between Jurong East Ter and Connaught Dr (Loop) as a peak hour service on weekdays and Saturdays
- 1983 (18 Dec): Integrated with Service 86, extended to Hougang Int and converted to full day service
- 1985 (30 Jun): Amended to Jurong East Int
- 1988 (03 Jan): Serves new staggered bus stop opposite Treasury Bldg along Shenton Way, skipping the bus stop opposite Marina House
- 1988 (06 Jun): First bus from Hougang Int brought forward to 0545 hrs on Sundays and Public Holidays
- 1988 (18 Dec): Integrated with Service 79 and amended to ply AYE and Alexandra Rd, skipping Clementi Rd and Pasir Panjang Rd
- 1994 (17 Dec): Extended to Hougang Ctrl Int
- 1998 (24 May): Amended to Hougang Central Temp Int
- 1999: Skips abolished pair of bus stops outside and opposite Wishart Rd along Telok Blangah Rd
- 1999: Last bus from Jurong East Int extended to 2345 hrs daily
- 2001 (20 May): Amended back to Hougang Central Int
- 2002: Serves new pair of bus stops after Sommerville Rd and after Sunshine Lodge along Upp Serangoon Rd
- 2003 (20 Jun): Serves new pair of bus stops outside Potong Pasir Stn along Upp Serangoon Rd
- 2003 (27 Jul): Shortened to loop at Temasek Ave under North East MRT Line Rationalisation Phase 2
- 2005 (12 Jun): Serves new bus stop outside Science Park along AYE
- 2006 (29 Oct): Serves new bus stop outside VivoCity along Telok Blangah Rd
- 2008 (07 Dec): Skips abolished bus stop opposite Temenggong D Mosque along Telok Blangah Rd
- 2010 (26 Apr): Amended to Marina Ctr Ter, skipping Collyer Quay/Fullerton Rd and Esplanade Dr
- 2011 (17 Dec): Amended to Jurong East Temp Int
- 2012 (25 Jun): Designated wheelchair-accessible bus service (WAB)
- 2013 (01 Dec): Serves new bus stop outside Downtown Stn along Central Blvd
- 2016 (12 Jun): Operations transferred to Tower Transit Singapore Pte Ltd from SBS Transit Ltd
- 2020 (06 Dec): Amended to relocated Jurong East Int, skipping Jurong East Ctrl
- 2021 (27 Feb): Amended to the relocated Marina Ctr Ter
- 2026 (8 Mar): Extended to Tengah Int under the LTA’s Bus Connectivity Enhancement Programme (BCEP)
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Extortionate travel time
Extend to Tengah in March
On 04/09/20 I boarded bus 97 to Cycle and Carriage at HarbourFront between 1145to 1120
I told the Bus Captain, I don’t know the name of the bus stop of my destination; yet he smilingly nodded his head to listen to my explanation. I told him if I missed the last bus stop at AYE before the bus turned in Jurong Townhall Road, I had to walk a long distance to my destination at Pandan Garden.
He smiled and assured me he understood my dilemma.
I enjoyed my ride because I knew I won’t miss my destination. When the bus arrived at my destination: Cycle and Carriage, it took me just a few minutes to walk to my destination.
He seemed to enjoy and dedicated to his work.
Driver of route 97 at about 10pm tonight was very rude. When we got to the last stop i asked him how to i get to Vivo shopping centre but he would not help ke. Instead screaming at me to get off the bus. What kind of service is this??
On 13 February 2017, Tower Transit Singapore became the first bus operator in Singapore to celebrate Valentines Day. Tower Transit buses all had Happy Valentines Day programmed onto their buses’s Electronic Destination Signages (EDS) and ran an article in The New Paper regarding the couples working in Tower Transit.
full dd on wkn