SMRT Bus Service 972M is a route variant of Service 972, operating from Bukit Panjang Bus Interchange and looping at Orchard Road, passing through Bukit Panjang Estate, Petir Road and Newton MRT. Following the controversy over Bus 700 withdrawal and Bus 171 & 972 amendment, Service 972M was introduced as a mitigation measure to retain connectivity along Dunearn Road and Scotts Road. The route was originally intended to be the amended route of Service 972 itself.
↺ Orchard Rd via Newton MRT (Loop)
| Route Overview | ||||||||||||
Route  |
Bukit Panjang Bus Interchange ↺ Orchard Road (Loop) | |||||||||||
| Passes Through | Senja Rd, Jelapang Rd, Segar Rd, Fajar Rd, Petir Rd, BKE/PIE, Dunearn Rd / Bukit Timah Rd, Scotts Rd, Orchard, Dhoby Ghaut | |||||||||||
| Route Length | 42.8 km | |||||||||||
| Travelling Time | 140 mins | |||||||||||
| Operator Information | ||||||||||||
| BCM Route Package | Choa Chu Kang–Bukit Panjang Bus Package | |||||||||||
| Current Operator | SMRT Buses Ltd | |||||||||||
| Current Depot | Kranji Bus Depot (KJDEP) Buses park at: Woodlands Bus Park |
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| Current Fleet | Single Deck Bus: – Mercedes-Benz OC500LE |
Double Deck Bus: – Alexander Dennis Enviro500 – Volvo B9TL |
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| Operating Hours | ||||||||||||
| Departure Times from Bt Panjang |
Daily | |||||||||||
| 05:45 – 22:50 | ||||||||||||
| Operating Frequency | ||||||||||||
| 6:30am–8.30am | 8.31am–4.59pm | 5.00pm–7.00pm | After 7.00pm | |||||||||
| Loop Service | 8 – 10 mins | 12 – 18 mins | 9 – 11 mins | 24 – 25 mins | ||||||||
| Fare Information |
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| Fare | Charges regular distance fares |
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Service 972M was introduced to retain connectivity for commuters along Dunearn Road and Scotts Road, following the withdrawal of Services 700 & 700A in August 2020.
The routing for Service 972M was originally presented as a route amendment for Service 972 that took effect from 16 August 2020. However, these plans were met with strong negative feedback from Bukit Panjang residents who relied heavily on Service 972 as a direct bus service to the city via the Expressway, citing higher fares (due to the longer distance travelled via Newton MRT), and resulting in longer travelling time, partly contributed by known congestion issues around Dunearn Rd / Bukit Timah Rd and Newton Circus. (Main article: Controversy over Bus 700 withdrawal and Bus 171 & 972 amendment)
Following discussions with the Members of Parliament for Bukit Panjang, the Land Transport Authority as well as the Ministry of Transport, Service 972M was introduced as a mitigation measure, while the route of Service 972 remains unchanged.
In April 2022, Service 972M was amended to serve Petir Road, skipping Bukit Panjang Road with the withdrawal of Service 971.
MRT / LRT Stations Served:
- DT1–BP6 Bukit Panjang
- BP13 Senja
- BP10 Fajar
- BP9 Bangkit
- BP8 Pending
- DT10TE11 Stevens
- NS21–DT11 Newton
- NS22TE14 Orchard
- NS23 Somerset
- NS24NE6CC1 Dhoby Ghaut
Special Departures:
- Whitley Rd (Bef Stevens Stn Exit 4) → Bukit Panjang Int via Orchard Road
Weekdays: 07:33 & 08:03 - Penang Rd (Dhoby Ghaut Stn Exit B) → Bukit Panjang Int
Weekdays: 18:28 & 18:41
- Petir Rd (Aft Dairy Farm Rd) → Bukit Panjang Int
Weekdays: Between 06:45 – 07:25
Route Variant:
- Service 972: Bukit Panjang Int ↺ Orchard Road (Loop)
Daily, via Bukit Panjang Road & Stevens Road
Gallery:
Poster Gallery:
![[Withdrawn Poster] Bus 972: Route Amendment to Newton MRT](https://landtransportguru.net/web/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Aug20_Service-972-Amendment-212x300.jpg)
Operator History:
- 30 Aug 2020 – Present: SMRT Buses Ltd
The Bus Service Operating License (BSOL) for this route will be renewed in 2026 under the Choa Chu Kang–Bukit Panjang Bus Package.
History:
- 2020 (30 Aug): Introduced from Bukit Panjang to Orchard Road (Loop) via Newton MRT as part of the mitigation measures in response to planned bus route changes along the Downtown Line 2 Corridor. Wheelchair-accessible at launch.
- 2022 (03 Apr): Amended to Bukit Panjang Ring Rd & skipping Senja Link towards Orchard Road due to the conversion of part of Senja Road and Senja Link to one-way traffic; Amended to ply Pending Road & Petir Road, skipping Bukit Panjang Road.
- 2023 (08 Jan): Temporarily skips the bus stop outside Newton Stn Exit B along Scotts Rd due to upgrading works
- 2023 (27 Aug): Resumes serving the bus stop outside Newton Stn Exit B along Scotts Rd after completion of upgrading works
Reference
- Chee Hong Tat 徐芳达 – Facebook
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THIS ROUTE GODDAMN ROUTE KILLER FIRST WIPE OUT 700 (AND 171) AND NOW 971! RATHER THIS ROUTE BE DISCONTINUED
Cannot discontinued cause residents of bukit panjang along senja, Jelapang Road currently can have easy access to transfer to other bus service along bukit timah road and get to other place,
LTA has decided that bus service 972M to pending and petir road is due to the residents there and feedback about lack of direct connection to orchard areas during off peak and weekends and they can go other part of bukit panjang,
The one way traffic at senja is part of the upcoming new Senja/KJE flyover interchange is to allow smooth traffic flow while towards the highway in the past residents has complained about the traffic jam and lta has decided to bulit the new flyover you can see for information from one monitoring.
For bus service 972M residents can transfer to other bus service along pending road like, 963, 960, 966, 184 etc during weekends and off peak for easy access.
Please do not make this worse to the residents about the changes and plz my mp had say that he and lta have try their best to minimise inconvenience due to the new BTO flat at senja close.
then tell me why must 972M go to Petir and Pending road instead of following service 972 via bt panjang ring road only?
oops forget about that but they could have just left 971 alone
(ignore my reply)
If 972M go to bukit panjang ring road and skip jelapang road then how will the residents at jelapang road include me which i stay this area go to other part of singapore like 966 to the east during weekends?
If 972M skip Jelapang road the waiting time for bus service 972 along jelapang road need to wait like 16-20 Mins during off peak hours i think lta might increases the frequency after few weeks of amendment, But increases its frequency is not easy they (LTA) need to save cost and its resources.
Which is why LTA allow 972M go to pending road and petir road due to residents feedback there and they can go other side of bukit panjang during off peak and weekends.
If don’t trust me then email to lta and see what they say.
Bus service 972M will be amendment to serve the new BTO in senja along senja road and serve bukit panjang ring road (Opp Jelapang lrt) bus stop while towards jelapang road due to the one way traffic along senja link, and skip one bus stop along senja link.
Also bus service 972M amendment to serve pending road and petir road while service 971 will be discontinued from 4th Apirl 2022 the last day of operation for service 971 is on 1st Apirl 2022 , while the changes for 972M start from 3rd apirl 2022
I believe SMRT Service 972M is indeed a good move for Bukit Panjang residents, for those who wants to commute to Newton MRT, especially for those who wants to go along North South Line or heading Novena or Toa Payoh, or any other locations on NSL. So thank god LTA make this Service 972M a good one, as can bring other alternatives for them.
This route was the cause of 700’s wihdrawal. Should withdraw this route and reintroduce bus 700 in its old form
Are you trying to be funny or what? Please understand this, and think before you say.
I know it’s not alright for Pending/Petir as they don’t have 700/700A anymore, BUT can you think about it. 700/700A was withdrawn as the demand was LOW when Downtown Line 2 opened. Can you even look at residents along Bukit Panjang Road, most people who take 700 is mainly for people who go Shenton Way or Suntec City, or sometimes Newton. People who go to Orchard, many residents along that stretch will want to take 190.
Re-introducing 700/700A is ridiculous as first, the route duplicates alot (except Pending/Petir). There’s other ways like amend 972M to serve Pending or Petir Road. So please stop blaming 700/700A withdrawal that cause 972M to be introduced. You should look at Bukit Panjang Road that many prefer 190 as it’s shorter and faster to go there and vice versa.
They could have simply just renumbered 700 to 972M, amend the old 700 routing to the new 972M routing and still achieve the same objective. Also draws from the same taxes as 972.
But instead, the Pending/Petir residents got stuff like 971E conversion and then withdrawn when 971E could have been withdrawn directly instead.
972M can terminate at MCT as 171 being truncated leaves a spot for another route.
960/e and 75 can supply it, just additional buses from 700/A can be transferred to WLDEP and some in KJDEP. WLDEP may also consider adding Euro 5/6 buses to the fleet.
Good idea 972M to marina center bus terminal will be good.
IMO 972 should terminate at MCT instead of 972M. Doesn’t make sense that the route variant is a longer bi-directional service while the parent route is a shorter loop service. Ideally both 972 & 972M can be extended to MCT once the new terminal is ready. At 972/972M BCs will get to have a resting point in town area and 700A deleted sector at Temasek Ave/Blvd will be restored.
Another plausible route extension alternative for 972/M is extending it to Kampong Bahru Ter via 190’s route or the future Tiong Bahru ITH via Clemenceau Ave and Havelock Road once its ready.
Why does 853M exist, then?
Good suggestion on allowing BCs to have a resting point in town area. I like it.