SMRT Bus Service 966 is a trunk route from Woodlands Temporary Interchange and looping at Marine Parade, passing through Marsiling, Bukit Panjang, Whitley, Jalan Toa Payoh, Eunos and Still Road. Incorporating long express sectors, the route serves as an important connection between the housing estates of Bukit Panjang, Toa Payoh, Eunos and Marine Parade.
| Technical Information | ||
Route  |
Woodlands Temporary Bus Interchange ↺ Marine Parade Road (Loop) |
|
| Passes Through | Marsiling, Bukit Panjang, Whitley, Jln Toa Payoh, Eunos, Still Rd | |
| Route Length | 63.5km | |
| Travelling Time | 125 mins (Off-Peak) | |
| Operator Information | ||
| BCM Route Package | Sembawang – Yishun Bus Package | |
| Current Operator | SMRT Buses Ltd | |
| Current Depot | Ang Mo Kio Bus Depot (AMDEP) Buses park at: Woodlands Bus Park (WLBP) |
|
| Current Fleet | 12-metre Double Deck Bus: – Alexander Dennis Enviro500 – MAN A95 12-metre Single Deck Bus: – MAN NL323F |
|
| Departure Times from Woodlands |
0530 – 2217 (Weekdays | Full Loop) 0545 – 2217 (Sat, Sun/PHs | Full Loop) 2230 – 2330 (Daily | Terminates at Parkway Parade, B02 Marine Parade Rd) |
|
| Departure Times from Marine Parade |
From Opp Parkway Parade, Marine Parade Rd 0545 – 2330 (Weekdays) 0600 – 2330 (Sat, Sun/PHs) |
|
| Frequency | Loop Service: | Notes |
| 0630-0830: 05 – 07 mins 0831-1659: 05 – 11 mins 1700-1900: 06 – 10 mins After 1900: 10 – 13 mins |
From 2230hrs onwards, buses leaving Woodlands Temp Int will terminate at Marine Parade Road (Parkway Parade). | |
Service 966 is an inter-town route serving between the housing estates around Woodlands, Bukit Panjang, Jalan Toa Payoh, Eunos and Marine Parade. The route is frequented as a fast connection between Woodlands, Bukit Panjang, Toa Payoh and Eunos due to its long express sectors along the Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE) and Pan-Island Expressway (PIE).
The route shares its Woodlands – Bukit Panjang sector with Services 187 and 963, but is otherwise non-duplicative for most of its route and boasts many unique connections. Despite few duplicating routes, this service experiences moderate to low demand during off-peak hours, but very high demand during peak hours. As such, high capacity Alexander Dennis Enviro500 double-deck buses were deployed in August 2014 to cope with peak hour loads. As of 2015, the BSEP has added a significant eight buses to improve the route, among the most resources allocated to enhancing an existing bus route under the BSEP.
The route being exceptionally long has a runtime of around 2 hours and 20 minutes, and is prone to bunching up and delays due to expressway jams during the peak hours, causing large fluctuations in bus frequency. From 2230hrs onwards (daily), buses leaving Woodlands Temp Int will terminate at Marine Parade Road (Parkway Parade).
MRT/LRT Stations served:
Special Departures:
- Marine Parade Rd (Opp Parkway Parade) → Woodlands Temp Int
Weekdays:Â 0545hrs, 0600hrs, 0615hrs, 0630hrs (4 departures)
Saturdays:Â 0600hrs, 0615hrs, 0630hrs (3 departures)
Sat/Sun/PHs:Â 0600hrs, 0620hrs (2 departures)
- Bt Panjang Road (Blk 223) → Marine Parade → Woodlands Temp Int
Weekdays AM Peak; Saturdays 0605hrs; Sunday 0600hrs - Woodlands Temp Int → Marine Parade Rd (Parkway Parade)
Daily, 2230hrs – 2330hrs
Fare: Charges basic distance fares. See Bus Fares.
Gallery:
Operator History:
- 2003 – 2004: Trans-Island Bus Services Ltd
- 2004 – Present: SMRT Buses Ltd
- (~September 2021) onwards: Tower Transit Singapore Pte Ltd
Operations for this route would be transferred to Tower Transit in 2021 as part of the Sembawang – Yishun Bus Package.
The Bus Service Operating License (BSOL) for this route will be renewed in 2026 under the Sembawang – Yishun Bus Package.
History:
- 2003 (16 Nov): Introduced between Woodlands Regional Int and Marine Parade (Loop).
- 2007 (07 Jan): Amended to ply Bukit Panjang Rd, Pending Rd, Petir Rd and Dairy Farm Rd in both directions instead of BKE (express)
- 2011 (04 Sep): Amended to Whampoa East instead of Whampoa North, due to the closure of Whampoa North for the new Woodsville Interchange
- 2012 (21 Oct):Â Amended to skip Bendemeer Rd / Serangoon Rd entirely
- 2012 (15 Nov):Â Designated wheelchair-accessible bus route (WAB)
- 2013:Â Service improvement under the Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP)
- 2014 (18 Aug): Alexander Dennis Enviro500Â double-deck buses deployed
- 2016 (12 Mar): Amended to Woodlands Temp Int
Past Routings:
- Refer to this article
- 2007: Amended to present routing. No significant route changes since 2007.
On Wednesday i saw a Volvo b9tl in 966 please update
Bus 966 driver
Taking their time
1. No passages alighting or boarding bus they can also stop at bus stop for 5mins
2. Driver as slow as snail
3. Old people asking them about bus Direction they do not bother to help ans just say no no
Now got 2 permanent MAN A95 too..Please update.