| TE32CR1 Changi Terminal 5 |
|
 |
|
| Address | — |
| Lines Served | Thomson-East Coast Line Cross Island Line |
| Operators | SMRT Trains (TEL) TBC (CRL) |
| Structure | Underground |
| Platform | TBC |
| Opening | Mid-2030s |
Currently under construction, Changi Terminal 5 is an upcoming MRT Station which will serve the Changi Airport Terminal 5. The working name for the station, as well as the station code, was officially announced by the Land Transport Authority in July 2025.
This station is located within the Ground Transportation Centre (GTC) at Changi Airport Terminal 5, which is part of an Integrated Transport Hub inclusive of a Bus Interchange.
Changi Terminal 5 MRT Station will be an interchange station between the Cross Island Line (CRL) and the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL). It will also serve as the CRL’s eastern terminus station. This station is also part of the Thomson-East Coast Line extension (TELe).
Rail connectivity for Changi Airport Terminal 5 via this train station will include direct train services to the City Centre further northwards to the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link terminal at Woodlands North via the TEL, and other major hubs in Singapore such as Punggol Digital District and Jurong Lake District via the CRL.
Planning
Feasibility studies for TEL & CRL to connect to the future Changi Airport Terminal 5 were mentioned in a speech by Mr Khaw Boon Wan, then Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister of Transport at the groundbreaking ceremony of the TEL (East Coast Stretch), held at Marine Parade station project site on 21 July 2016.
In March 2017, The Straits Times published an article (Changi’s T5 likely to be served by 2 MRT lines), mentioning the speech back in July 2016 and that it will be “very likely” that the TEL & CRL will serve this new MRT Station at Changi Airport Terminal 5 based on plans that The Straits Times understands. The Straits Times also mentioned that a final decision has not been made. This article was later removed between May 2024 and May 2025.
On 25 January 2019, Phase 1 of the CRL was announced, comprising 12 stations and 29 kilometres from CR2 Aviation Park to CR13TE7 Bright Hill. In Minister Khaw Boon Wan’s speech on the Announcement of the Cross Island Line (Phase 1) Alignment at TEL Bright Hill Station work-site, it was mentioned that “Cross Island Line will stretch across Singapore … including potentially to Changi Airport”. With station code CR1 not being part of the CRL Phase 1, it was likely that it was reserved for the MRT Station at Changi Airport Terminal 5.
On 25 May 2019, the Land Transport Authority released the Land Transport Master Plan 2040, confirming that TEL will be extended from its original terminal at TE31DT37 Sungei Bedok station to Changi Airport Terminal 5. It would then continue towards CG2 Changi Airport, and join the existing Changi Airport Branch line (Changi Airport—Expo—Tanah Merah) which will be converted from the East West Line to the TEL.
Main article: Changi Branch Line to become part of Thomson-East Coast Line | Land Transport Guru
It remains to be seen if there will be additional stations constructed between Sungei Bedok and Changi Airport Terminal 5. The alignment of this stretch has also yet to be confirmed.
On 14 May 2025 as part of the groundbreaking ceremony of Terminal 5, Changi Airport Group confirmed that the MRT Station at Changi Airport Terminal 5 will be an interchange station with the CRL & TEL.
In the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s Draft Master Plan 2025 for the North-East Region, an infographic indicated a proposed track alignment near Changi Airport Terminal 5 in the background. This rendering was featured in the “Weaving Recreation into the Neighbourhood” section, specifically under the “Fun by the Water, Play Near Home” initiative. This initiative is a key component of the regional plans aimed at enhancing recreational spaces within the North-East Region.
Official Announcement
On 25 July 2025, the Land Transport Authority officially announced the Changi Terminal 5 interchange station, which is part of the Thomson-East Coast Line extension.
Train Services
- Thomson-East Coast Line
Woodlands bound: towards TE1 Woodlands North via TE31DT37 Sungei Bedok
Changi bound: towards TE35EW4 Tanah Merah via TE33 Changi Airport - Cross Island Line
Westbound: towards CR19 Jurong Lake District via CR2 Aviation Park (future extensions under CRL Phase 3 to be announced)
Construction
Contract T316 – Changi Airport Underground Infrastructure – involves the construction and completion of twin bored tunnels extending eastward from CG2 Changi Airport station towards Changi Airport Terminal 5. This scope includes the construction of associated cross passages, launch shafts, underground infrastructure, low point sumps within the tunnels, and related ancillary works.
Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co (Singapore) Pte Ltd (STEC) was awarded Contract T316 for S$321.7 million. In 2022, STEC’s website indicated a contract duration from October 2019 to September 2026. However, as of 2024, the website has been updated to reflect a revised timeframe spanning from 2019 to 2031.
In addition, Contract CR102 for the design and construction of tunnels between Aviation Park Station and Changi East Depot was awarded to a joint venture between Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co (Singapore) Pte Ltd and LT Sambo Co. Ltd. (Singapore Branch) at a contract value of $780 million on 16 December 2021. The project involves 6 km of tunnels to be dug at an approximate depth of 20 metres below ground level, but up to 40 metres deep at their deepest point. As detailed by the CRL construction blog and accompanying map overlaid over the URA masterplan, CR102 tunnels include a southern extension in the Changi East Industrial Zone towards Changi Airport Terminal 5, where a future station is expected to be built.
Gallery
Note:
This article was previously named as Changi Airport Terminal 5 MRT Station prior to the official announcement of the station working name on 25 July 2025.
External Links & References
- Speech by Mr Khaw Boon Wan, Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister of Transport (21 July 2016) – National Archives of Singapore
- Changi’s T5 likely to be served by 2 MRT lines – The Straits Times (Published Mar 2017; web archive link)
- Speech by Minister Khaw Boon Wan on the Announcement of the Cross Island Line (Phase 1) Alignment at TEL Bright Hill Station work-site – Ministry of Transport
- Changi Airport Terminal 5 breaks ground | Changi Airport Group (14 May 2025)
- Fact Sheet: Changi Airport Terminal 5 | Changi Airport Group (14 May 2025)
- Fun by the Water, Play Near Home – URA Draft Master Plan 2025 (21 Jul 2025)
- Thomson-East Coast Line Extension and Cross Island Line: Connecting Changi Airport Directly to the City Centre and Major Hubs – Land Transport Authority (25 Jul 2025)
Listing the terminal numbers in the station names might be not too fitting… I think this is a better idea:
TE32 Changi East (for T5)
TE33 Changi Central (for T2 and 3)
The part in brackets need not always be listed in maps, perhaps only at the stations themselves for the benefit of tourists.
Dunno why EWL doesn’t extend here…
Aren’t you the self-claimed senior bus captain with all the “behind the scene” knowledge?? So much for shooting others down in other articles huh.
Anyway educated guess, not possible for EWL to turn from changi airport MRT to T5 MRT station, the curvature is too huge and not feasible for a train to navigate.
Wonder why LTA didn’t just built another line to Harbourfront and Orchard?Benefits for tourists too.
TE31 Sungei Bedok
TE32 Changi Airport T5
TE33 Changi Airport T1-T3
TE34 Expo
TE35 Tanah Merah
I have a feeling, for practicality, the conversion of the Changi Airport branch line will be done in 2 phases:
East bound
West bound
The sequence would be as such:
EWL-EWL
No service-EWL
TEL-No service
TEL-TEL
Each time close one section to convert (dismantle existing system, install new system, testing and commissioning). Each closure would probably take about 6 months, so this will probably take one year.
This is the only way to ensure that the MRT connection still remain for all stations on the Changi Airport branch line. Waiting time will be long, but probably still around 15 minutes per train, since only one train.
And, prior to joining with the main TEL, TEL Changi Airport section will operate separately. Meaning to say: the required TEL trains will have to be transported to the new East Coast depot via trailer, before the main TEL connection to the East Coast Depot is ready. Probably from around 2027 until the TEL mainline extension to Changi Airport is ready. This will be a rare phenomenon, but not the first time done in Singapore (previously was NSL with Chua Chu Kang branch line before joining with the rest of NSL later on).