SMRT Bus Service 975

SMRT Bus Service 975 is a trunk route running from Bukit Panjang and looping at Lim Chu Kang Road End, passing through Teck Whye, Choa Chu Kang MRT, Choa Chu Kang Avenue 3, Old Choa Chu Kang Road and Lim Chu Kang Road. The bus route serves as the sole bus connection to Lim Chu Kang, with the majority of ridership originating from foreign workers’ dormitories and military installations in the Old Choa Chu Kang and Lim Chu Kang area.

Technical Information
Route	Bukit Panjang Bus Interchange ↺ Lim Chu Kang Road (Loop)
Passes Through	Teck Whye, Choa Chu Kang, Old Choa Chu Kang Rd, Old Lim Chu Kang Rd
Route Length	36.5 km
Travelling Time	100 mins
Operator Information
BCM Route Package	Choa Chu Kang – Bukit Panjang Bus Package
Current Operator	SMRT Buses Ltd
Current Depot	Kranji Bus Depot (KJDEP)
Current Fleet	12-metre Single Deck Bus: – Mercedes-Benz OC500LE – MAN NL323F
Departure Times from Bt Panjang	0545 – 2238 (Weekdays, Saturdays) 0600 – 2238 (Sundays/PHs) 2250 – 2335 (Daily | Terminates at Police Coast Guard, Lim Chu Kang Rd)
Frequency	Loop Service
	0630-0830: 07 mins 0831-1659: 07 – 11 mins 1700-1900: 06 – 09 mins After 1900: 09 – 12 mins

Route Information

Service 975 is both a residential and industrial route, serving housing estates around Teck Whye & Choa Chu Kang East, as well as many industries and military installations along Old Choa Chu Kang Road and Lim Chu Kang Road, with connections to transport nodes at Choa Chu Kang Town Centre and Bukit Panjang. The route compliments Service 190, between Bukit Panjang, Teck Whye Estate and Choa Chu Kang, as well as Service 172 between Choa Chu Kang and Old Choa Chu Kang Rd.

This bus service loops at the former Lim Chu Kang Bus Terminal, which was converted to an ordinary bus stop after the introduction of Service 975. Buses leaving Bt Panjang after 2249 hours will terminate at Lim Chu Kang Road End (Police Coast Guard), the former Lim Chu Kang Terminal.

Formerly a Singapore Bus Service (SBS) route since 1993, it was then known as Service 175. The route was transferred to Trans-Island Bus Service (TIBS) in 1999 and renumbered to Service 975 in 2005. It has been operated by SMRT ever since.

Due to height limitations along Lim Chu Kang Road, double-deck buses are not deployed along the full route. Single-deck rigid buses are deployed on Service 975 on a regular basis, with two Double-deck buses from Service 972 perform special departures from Brickland Road (Opp Hai Inn See Tp) to Bukit Panjang during Weekdays AM Peak hours. Shortworking Trip 975B occasionally uses articulated buses.

Owing to unique demand patterns along this route, especially between Choa Chu Kang MRT and Old Choa Chu Kang Road, Short-Trip Service 975A was introduced in May 2014, operating during weekday peak hours. Short-Trip Service 975B was later introduced in April 2016, operating during the afternoons and evenings on Sundays and Public Holidays.

From 13 February 2017, Service 975B was upgraded to operate daily, running in the evenings on Weekdays and Saturdays in addition to Sundays and Public Holidays.

Service 975 was amended to Bukit Panjang Integrated Transport Hub on 04 Sep 2017 as part of the Bus Service Enhancements for Bukit Panjang ITH Opening

MRT / LRT Stations Served:

• DT1BP6  Bukit Panjang
• BP5 Phoenix
• NS4BP1 Choa Chu Kang

Short-Trip Service:

• Service 975A: Bukit Panjang Int → Lorong Rusuk (Aft Old Lim Chu Kang Rd)
  Weekdays, 0710hrs—0915hrs, 1520hrs—1900hrs
  975A buses will do return trips to Bukit Panjang starting from Lim Chu Kang Road (Opp Chinese Cemy Path 11)
• Service 975B: Choa Chu Kang Ave 4 (Opp Choa Chu Kang Stn) → Lim Chu Kang Rd (Opp Lim Chu Kang Lane 3)
  Weekdays: 1913hrs—2016hrs | Saturdays:  1918hrs—2001hrs | Sundays & PHs: 1608hrs—2315hrs

Short-Trip Service 975A caters to heavy weekday peak period demand between Choa Chu Kang MRT and government installations along Old Choa Chu Kang Road, while supplementing the Teck Whye Estate sector between Choa Chu Kang MRT and Bukit Panjang.

Short-Trip Service 975B caters to heavy evening demand from foreign workers boarding at Choa Chu Kang MRT, and returning to their dormitories at Old Choa Chu Kang Road, Murai Farmway and Ama Keng, as well as military personnel returning to their respective camps and airbases on Sunday/Public Holiday nights.

Special Departures:

• Lim Chu Kang Road (Police Coast Guard) → Bt Panjang Int
  0530hrs (Weekdays, Saturdays) | 0545hrs (Sundays/PHs) | until the first bus arrives from Bt Panjang
• Lim Chu Kang Road (Opp Chinese Cemy Path 11) → Bt Panjang Int
  Reverse trips of Shortworking Trip 975A during Weekday Peak Hours
• Brickland Rd (Opp Hai Inn See Tp) → Bt Panjang Int
  Weekdays AM Peak

Fare: Charges basic distance fares. See Bus Fares. Calculate your bus fare using LTA’s fare calculator on MyTransport.sg here.

Gallery:

Gallery (Posters):

Operator History:

• 1993 – 1999: Singapore Bus Services Ltd
• 1999 – 2004: Trans-Island Bus Services Ltd
• 2004 – Present: SMRT Buses Ltd

The Bus Service Operating License (BSOL) for this route will be renewed in 2023 under the Choa Chu Kang – Bukit Panjang.

Route History:

• 1993 (18 Jul): Introduced as Service 175, Lim Chu Kang Road End – Upp Bt Timah Rd (Loop)
• Later amended to Sungei Tengah Rd, Brickland Rd and Choa Chu Kang Ave 3
• 1999 (26 Dec): Handed to TIBS
• 2005 (27 Feb): Renumbered to Service 975, Bukit Panjang Int – Lim Chu Kang Rd End (Loop)
• 2010 (28 Nov): Amended to Lor Rusuk & Lim Chu Kang Rd; the sector along Old Lim Chu Kang Rd had been permanently closed.
• 2011 (23 Oct): Skips 2 bus stops along Old Choa Chu Kang Road which was removed due to road widening works
• 2013: Service improvement under the Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP)
• 2014 (12 May): Shortworking trip 975A introduced.
• 2015 (Jun): Bus Service Reliability Framework (BSRF) implemented for trial till Aug 2016
• 2015 (05 Oct): Start of double decker bus special departures from Service 972 during weekdays AM peak hours.
• 2015 (27 Dec): Calls at an additional bus stop along Petir Rd towards Lim Chu Kang as part of DTL2 Bukit Panjang Bus Service Enhancements
• 2016 (24 Apr): Shortworking trip 975B introduced. Operates on Sundays & PHs, 1500hrs – 2322hrs
• 2017 (13 Feb): Shortworking trip 975B converted to operate daily. Operating hours revised to 1913hrs—2016hrs on Weekdays, 1918hrs—2001hrs on Saturdays, and 1608hrs—2315hrs on Sundays & PHs.
• 2017 (16 Jul): Designated wheelchair-accessible bus route (WAB)
• 2017 (04 Sep): Amended to Bukit Panjang ITH

Past Routings:

• Refer to this article
• 2010: Amended to present routing. No significant route changes since 2010.

External Links & References:

• TransitLink E-Guide

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