Expo MRT Station

Expo MRT Station (CG1/DT35) is an above-ground station along the East West Line (EWL)’s Changi Airport Branch line. It is built along Changi South Avenue 1, near the junction with Expo Drive.

The station is designed by British architectural firm Foster and Partners, featuring two shell-shaped roof elements. A 40-metre-diameter disc, clad in stainless steel, shelters the ticket hall and marks the station entrance, while a 130-metre-long, blade-like form, sheathed in titanium, covers the platforms, and is supported by pairs of twin Y-shaped columns outside the tracks, creating a large interior space at platform level. Designed for heavy passenger loads at peak times, clear sight lines and a strong sense of orientation were factored into the design.

The station brings rail connectivity to Singapore Expo, the largest convention and exhibition venue in Singapore, as well as Changi Business Park in the immediate vicinity. East West Line train services operate as shuttle service between Tanah Merah and Changi Airport, necessitating a cross-platform transfer at Tanah Merah station.

From 21 Oct 2017, Expo station became an interchange station with the Downtown Line Stage 3, with the station code CG1DT35
, in addition to being the Eastern terminus of the Downtown Line. A future extension of the Downtown Line (Stage 3 Extension – opening in Year 2026) will add two more stations to the Downtown Line, reverting Expo DTL station to an en-route stop.

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First / Last Train Timings

Passengers heading for the City should board the train no later than 11:23pm to be able to connect with the last Tuas Link bound train at Tanah Merah. Passengers taking the last train out of Expo will still be able to connect with the last Pasir Ris bound train.

Train frequencies are 7 – 9 mins during peak hours, and 12 mins during off-peak hours on the East West Line – Changi Airport Branch.

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Station Layout

L2	Platform A	East West Line towards EW4CG Tanah Merah
	Platform B	East West Line towards CG2 Changi Airport
	Lift Lobby	Faregates, Lift to ground level
L1	EWL Concourse	Faregates, Ticketing Service Kiosks, Passenger Service Centre, Lift to EWL Platform, Station Exits
	Street Level	Bus stops, Taxi stand, pick-up/drop-off point, Retail Shops
B1	Subway	Underpass, Retail Shops
	Transfer Linkway	Paid Transfer Link between EWL & DTL Stations
B2	DTL Concourse	Faregates, Ticketing Service Kiosks, Passenger Service Centre
B3	Platform C	Downtown Line towards DT1–BP6 Bukit Panjang
	Platform D	Downtown Line terminating trains, alighting only

Platforms

East-West Line (L2):

Platform A: East West Line towards CG2 Changi Airport (→) Platform B: East West Line towards EW4CG Tanah Merah (←)

Since 2024, East West Line train services at Platforms A and B may be modified to alternate between the usual directions: Platform A to Changi Airport and Platform B to Tanah Merah. These modifications are believed to be intended to avoid the use of the track crossing at Changi Airport. When these arrangements are in place, please refer to the destination screens at the platform, station staff deployed, or the ad-hoc train directional posters for the destination of the next train at Platforms A and B, respectively.

Downtown Line (B3):

Platform D: Downtown Line terminating trains, alighting only Platform C: Downtown Line towards DT1–BP6 Bukit Panjang via DT34 Upper Changi (←)

East West Line:

Expo station has two elevated East-West Line platforms in an island platform arrangement.

Designed by British architectural firm Foster and Partners, the station has a large, blade-like roof over the platform supported by columns outside of the tracks, allowing for a spacious interior that is easily navigated. Internally, the polished metal roof surface reflects daylight down through the building, minimising the need for artificial lighting, while externally, the cladding deflects the suns rays, thus helping to create a microclimate on the platforms that is refreshingly up to four degrees cooler than the outside temperature.

East West Line train services operate as shuttle service between Tanah Merah and Changi Airport, necessitating a cross-platform transfer at Tanah Merah station for passengers heading towards other destinations. Train frequencies are 7 – 9 mins during peak hours, and 12 mins during off-peak hours.

The station is also unique in having faregates at platform level, serving a single lift that leads to unpaid areas of the ticket concourse.

An additional lift was built in 2017 from the Platform level to the Concourse level within the paid area to facilitate transfer to and from the Downtown Line.

Downtown Line:

Expo station has two platforms in an island platform arrangement.  As a terminus station for the Downtown Line, Platform D is used only for the alighting of passengers from trains arriving from Upper Changi. Trains will switch tracks further up the line and return to Platform C to pick up a fresh load of passengers for its next journey towards Bukit Panjang.

Concourse:

East West Line:

The station has a ticket concourse located at ground level. Passengers who require lift access can use the lift within unpaid areas of the station, which leads to faregates on the Platform level.

Downtown Line:

 

Art in Transit: “A Banquet” by Yeo Chee Kiong

Singapore Expo brings together the traders from all over the world to showcase their products and to demonstrate their innovative ideas.

‘A Banquet‘ illustrates ‘Free-Trade Spirit’ with two free-floating ‘Speech balloons’ between two chairs of negotiation. Through the mirror-finished stainless-steel, the ‘speech balloon’ and ‘deceptive isometric chair model’ becomes two sets of magnificent ‘kaleidoscopes’. They cast and reflect the ever-changing and moving visual pattern or passing-by commuters between each protruding hemisphere and the recess in tetragon piece.

In essence, ‘A Banquet‘ attempts to articulate the importance of organic communication in an era of technological advancement and digital media.

Station Amenities

East West Line Station

• Self-service machines at Concourse level (L1)
• Retail shops at Concourse level (L1)
• Bicycle Racks at Station Exits

Downtown Line Station

• Retail shops at Subway Level (B1)
• Public Toilet at Ticket Concourse Level (B2)

Exits

The East West Line Expo MRT station has two exits on both sides of the station (Exit A & Exit B).

The Downtown Line Expo MRT Station has its “Exit A” located near the East-West Line Station’s “Exit A” at street level. Exits C, D & E  are also at street level. Exits F & G are connected via Basement 1 to the surrounding buildings.

All exits offer barrier-free accessibility for the disabled.

Exit	Location	Nearby
A	Singapore Expo	Expo Drive, Upper Changi Road, Singapore Expo (Halls 1 – 6 and 7 – 9), The Max Pavilion, Max Atria
B	Changi South Avenue 1	Changi Buisness Park, Changi South Avenue 1, Changi City, Changi City Point, Capri by Fraser Changi City, Park Avenue Changi, ESR BizPark @ Changi, The Signature, Standard Chartered @ Changi, The IBM Place, Plaza 8 @ CBP, DBS Asia Hub, Yas Global Logistics, Thyssen Haniel Logistics Centre, U-Freight Logistics Centre, Xinlin Districentre
C	Expo Drive	Expo Halls 7 – 9, Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), The Max Pavilion
D	Changi Business Park	Capri by Fraser: Changi City, Changi City Point, DBS Asia Hub, Eightrium@CBP, One@Changi City, IBP Place, Plaza8 @ CBP, Park Avenue Changi, The Signature, ESR BizPark @ Changi
E	Changi South Avenue 1	Capri by Fraser: Changi City, Changi City Point, Citi, DBS Asia Hub, DBS Schenker Logistics Centre, One@Changi City, Thyssen Haniel Logistics Centre, U-Freight Logistics Centre, Yusen Logistics
F	Changi City Point (via B1)	Changi City Point
G	ESR BizPark @ Changi (via B1)	ESR BizPark @ Changi

 

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Transport Connections

Expo station connects to several bus stops in the vicinity, as well as taxi stands and passenger pick-up points.

Bus

There are eight official bus stops linked to Expo station. Other bus stops are added here to better display nearby bus connections.

No.	Bus stop	Exit	Bus Routes
B/s 1	96021 – Upp Changi Rd East (Opp Expo Halls 1/2/3)	A	12, 24, 38
B/s 2	96029 – Upp Changi Rd East (Expo Halls 1/2/3)	A	12, 24, 38
B/s 3	96229 – Xilin Ave (Singapore Expo)	A / B	35, 35M, 47, 118
B/s 4	96221 – Xilin Ave (Opp Singapore Expo)	A / B	35, 35M, 47, 118
B/s 5	96301 – Changi South Ave 1 (Expo Stn Exit B)	B	20, 20A, 118
B/s 6	96309 – Changi South Ave 1 (Expo Stn Exit E)	E	20, 20A, 118
B/s 7	96031 – Upp Changi Rd East (Opp Expo Halls 4/5/6)	A	12, 24, 38
B/s 8	96039 – Upp Changi Rd East (Expo Halls 4/5/6)	A	12, 24, 38
–	96311 – Changi South Ave 1 (Bef Changi Sth St 2)	B	47, 118
–	96319 – Changi South Ave 1 (Yusen Logistics)	B	47, 118
–	96381 – Changi South Ave 2 (Changi City Pt)	A	20, 47
–	96389 – Changi South Ave 2 (Opp Changi City Pt)	A	20, 47

Road

Taxi stands and pick-up/drop-off points are located near station exits:

Exit	Road	Provisions
A	Expo Drive (Singapore Expo Foyer 2)	Taxi stand (I02)
B	Changi South Avenue 1 (Northbound)	Pick-up/drop-off point
B / E	Changi South Avenue 1 (Changi City Point driveway)	Taxi stand, Pick-up/drop-off point

MRT Bus Bridging Service

In the event of a MRT service disruption affecting Expo station, MRT Bridging Buses may be activated to ply affected stretches of the East West Line or Downtown Line. In which case, the buses can be boarded from the following bus stops:

Towards	Bus stop	Exit
East West Line (EWL Bridging Bus)
EW4CG Tanah Merah	B/s 6: 96309 – Changi South Ave 1 (Expo Stn Exit E)	B / E
CG2 Changi Airport	B/s 5: 96301 – Changi South Ave 1 (Expo Stn Exit B)	B
Downtown Line (DTL Bridging Bus)
DT1–BP6 Bukit Panjang	B/s 5: 96301 – Changi South Ave 1 (Expo Stn Exit B)	A

In the event of a large-scale rail disruption affecting multiple stations, a special bridging bus service may be activated in addition to the usual bus bridging services.

• Outram Park – Tanah Merah – Expo – Changi Airport

In addition, passengers can board free regular bus services at Bus Stops 5, 6, 7 & 8 when activated.

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Passenger Usage Patterns

Serving Singapore Expo and Changi Business Park, Expo station encounters moderate to high demand during the regular peak hours (from employees heading in/out of Changi Business Park). During peak periods where major exhibitions are held at Singapore Expo, demand can be exceedingly high, and trains may be added to boost the capacity of the Changi Airport Branch line.

Construction

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Brief History

With the construction of Singapore Expo, a branch line was conceived to link the it with East West Line at Tanah Merah that eventually extended to Changi Airport. Train services on the Changi Airport Branch line began on 10 January 2001 between Tanah Merah and Expo, as a shuttle service. For a short while, it used the station code E13 until it was renumbered EW28 when the MRT map was revamped later in 2001. It was changed again to CG1 in June 2003, replacing the EW28 code which is now used for Pioneer Station.

When Changi Airport station was opened on 8 February 2002, through services from Boon Lay commenced after the full opening, with alternate Eastbound trains terminating at either Pasir Ris or Changi Airport. Due to substantially lower demand on the Branch line as compared to Simei, Tampines and Pasir Ris, train services were reverted to a shuttle service between Tanah Merah and Changi Airport since July 2003.

Future Developments

Downtown Line Stage 3 Extension

Expo Station will remain as the Eastern terminus of the Downtown Line until the Downtown Line Extension to Sungei Bedok opens, originally scheduled for Year 2024 and later delayed to Year 2025 and then Year 2026.

Thomson-East Coast Line Extension

Announced in the Land Transport Master Plan 2040 in May 2019, the present East West Line Changi Branch Line from Changi Airport to Tanah Merah will be converted to be part of the Thomson-East Coast Line Extension by around 2040.

Modification works would be done under Contract T3206 – Addition and Alteration to Changi Airport Line.

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Gallery

 

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External Links & References

• EXPO Station – Foster + Partners