SBS Transit Bus Service 72

SBS Transit Service 72 is a trunk service plying between Yio Chu Kang Interchange and Tampines Interchange, passing through Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5, Hougang Central and Tampines Road.

Route Overview
Route	Yio Chu Kang Bus Interchange ↔ Tampines Bus Interchange
Passes Through	Ang Mo Kio Ave 5, Hougang Ave 9, Hougang Ctrl, Tampines Rd, Tampines Ave 9
Route Length	Towards Tampines: 17.2 km						Towards Yio Chu Kang: 16.6 km
Travelling Time	80 mins
Operator Information
BCM Route Package	Tampines Bus Package
Current Operator	SBS Transit Ltd
Current Depot	Seletar Bus Depot (SEDEP)
Current Fleet	Single-deck & Double-deck buses
Operating Hours
Departure Times from Yio Chu Kang	Weekdays				Saturdays				Sundays / Public Holidays
	05:30 – 23:30				05:45 – 23:30				06:00 – 23:30
Departure Times from Tampines	Weekdays & Saturdays								Sundays / Public Holidays
	05:15 – 23:45								05:45 – 23:45
Operating Frequency
From Yio Chu Kang	6:30am–8.30am			8.31am–4.59pm			5.00pm–7.00pm			After 7.00pm
Weekdays	5 – 8 mins			5 – 10 mins			4 – 6 mins			7 – 14 mins
Saturdays	9 – 12 mins			8 – 13 mins			9 – 13 mins			10 – 11 mins
Sundays / Public Holidays	11 – 12 mins			9 – 13 mins			11 – 12 mins			10 – 12 mins
From Tampines	6:30am–8.30am			8.31am–4.59pm			5.00pm–7.00pm			After 7.00pm
Weekdays	5 – 8 mins			3 – 10 mins			4 – 7 mins			4 – 13 mins
Saturdays	10 – 11 mins			8 – 12 mins			10 – 13 mins			10 – 12 mins
Sundays / Public Holidays	10 – 12 mins			9 – 13 mins			12 – 13 mins			10 – 12 mins
Fare Information
Fare	Charges regular distance fares

Service 72 is a trunk route connecting the residential estates of Yio Chu Kang, Ang Mo Kio, Hougang, and Tampines. Key sectors of the route are:

• Yio Chu Kang to Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5: Serves ITE College Central and industries at Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2.
• Hougang: Covers Hougang Avenues 9 and 4, with transfers at Hougang Central (North East Line, bus interchange).
• Tampines: Serves industrial areas along Tampines Road and terminates at Tampines Interchange.

Within Hougang, Service 72 complements Services 116 and 329 in linking Hougang Central with residential estates along Avenues 4 and 9. In Tampines, it complements Services 27 and 168, connecting Tampines Central to estates along Avenue 9.

Historical Background

Service 72 was introduced in September 1996 as a peak-hour service linking Yio Chu Kang to Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 (Loop). In March 1998, it was integrated with the former Service 80 (Hougang Central ↔ Tampines) and extended to Tampines as a bidirectional route. The service underwent its last major amendment in June 2003, rerouting to serve Hougang Central with the launch of the NEL, allowing seamless transfers to Hougang MRT Station and Hougang Central Bus Interchange.

Demand Patterns

Service 72 is heavily utilized, operating a fleet dominated by double-deck buses to meet its high demand. It serves a diverse group of commuters, including residents travelling between towns and workers heading to industrial areas near Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 and Tampines Road.

On school days, the segment between Yio Chu Kang and Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 experiences very high demand during the morning peak hours, driven by students travelling to Nanyang Polytechnic and ITE College Central. To address this, Short Trip Services 72A (Yio Chu Kang → Hougang Central) and 72B (Yio Chu Kang → ITE College Central) were introduced in July 2012 and January 2013, respectively.

Short Trip 72B operates on ITE College Central school days with high frequencies of 2–4 minutes, boarding from a separate berth at Yio Chu Kang Interchange. In the afternoons and evenings, special departures of Service 72 are dispatched from ITE College Central towards Yio Chu Kang Interchange (i.e. reverse of Short Trip 72B). A full list of special departures is provided in the section below.

MRT Stations Served

• NS15 Yio Chu Kang
• NE14 Hougang
• EW2–DT32 Tampines

Special Departures

• Ang Mo Kio Ave 5 (ITE Coll Ctrl) → Tampines Int
  Weekdays: 15:33, 15:49, 15:54 & 18:14
• Hougang Ctrl (Opp Hougang Ctrl Int) → Tampines Int
  Saturdays: 05:50
  Sundays / Public Holidays: 05:50 & 06:08
• Tampines Ave 9 (Opp Blks 741/742) → Tampines Int
  Weekdays: 07:30, 07:53 & 08:14
• Hougang Ctrl (Hougang Ctrl Int) → Yio Chu Kang Int
  Weekdays: 08:05
• Ang Mo Kio Ave 5 (Opp ITE Coll Ctrl) → Yio Chu Kang Int
  Weekdays (ITE School Term): 11:55 – 19:08

Short Trip Services

• Service 72A: Yio Chu Kang Int → Hougang Ctrl (Opp Hougang Ctrl Int)
  Weekdays (ITE School Term): 06:19 – 10:16
  Weekdays (ITE School Holiday): 06:09 – 10:17
• Service 72B: Yio Chu Kang Int → Ang Mo Kio Ave 5 (ITE Coll Ctrl)
  Weekdays (ITE School Term): 07:00 – 10:14

Gallery:

Poster Gallery:

Operator History:

• 1996 – 2001: Singapore Bus Services Ltd
• 2001 – Present: SBS Transit Ltd

History:

• 1996 (02 Sep): Introduced between Yio Chu Kang Ter and Ang Mo Kio Ave 5 (Loop) as a peak-hour service on weekdays (Yio Chu Kang ↺ Ang Mo Kio Ave 5)
• 1998 (30 Mar): Integrated with Service 80, extended to Tampines Int and converted to full-day service (Yio Chu Kang ↔ Tampines)
• 1999: First bus from Tampines Int brought forward to 0515 hrs on weekdays and Saturday
• 1999: Last bus from Tampines Int extended to 2345 hrs daily
• 2000: Serves new pair of bus stops outside and opposite Tampines Dormitory along Tampines Ave 10
• 2002: Serves new pair of bus stops before and after Tampines Ave 9 along Tampines Ave 10
• 2003 (21 Jun): Amended to ply Hougang Central and Upp Serangoon Rd under North East MRT Line Rationalisation Phase 1
• 2007 (27 May): Designated wheelchair-accessible bus service (WAB)
• 2009 (19 Apr): Serves new pair of bus stops outside Blk 834 and outside Hougang Polyclinic along Hougang Ave 4
• 2017 (24 Dec): Amended to ply Tampines Central 8 & Tampines Concourse towards Tampines Int
• 2022 (27 Feb): Amended to ply the realigned Tampines Rd, skipping Tampines Link & part of Tampines Ave 10

Past Routings

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