History of Sembawang Bus Services

Introduction:

Sembawang is one of Singapore’s latest satellite towns developed since the late 1990s, located in the northern region of the island. To cater to the increasing population in the developing public housing estate, TIBS gradually introduced new trunk services and amended the routes of existing trunk services to serve the town. Several new inter-town trunk services also connected the town’s neighbourhoods with the town centre.

While there was no specific bus plan implemented by TIBS (and subsequently SMRT Buses), Sembawang Bus Interchange serves as the main transport hub for bus services and the MRT in the housing estate, opening its doors on 20th November 2005 along Sembawang Vista.

Pre-Interchange Opening (1999 – 2005):

Before the development of Sembawang New Town, the area where the housing estate occupies today was mainly served by long distance trunk services along Canberra Road and Sembawang Road.

In April 1999, TIBS introduced its 1st new bus route in Sembawang New Town, with the launch of Bus Service 859, connecting the newly constructed residential blocks along Sembawang Drive with the neighbouring Yishun Town Centre. In addition, the route of Bus Services 167, 169, 856 & 980 cut through the new housing estate along Canberra Road (for Bus Services 856 & 980) and Sembawang Road (for Bus Services 167 & 169).

Over the subsequent few years, more trunk services were added to Sembawang New Town between 1999 and 2001, while the bus interchange was constructed in the Sembawang Town Centre to serve as the primary transport node for the estate:

• Bus Service 859: New trunk service to Yishun from 4 Apr 1999
• Bus Service 981: New trunk service to Senoko Industrial Estate during weekday & Saturday peak hours from 9 Nov 1999
• Bus Service 962: New trunk service to Woodlands from 24 Jun 2001

Besides the existing roadside bus terminals along Admiralty Road West for Bus Service 980 and Sembawang Road End for Bus Service 167, Bus Service 981 was subsequently amended to start/end service at a pair of bus stops along Sembawang Way when the road opened in 2002, while the bus interchange remained under construction.

On 20th November 2005, the Sembawang Bus Interchange was opened, offering a pleasant environment for bus passengers to transfer and wait for their buses. Bus Services 167 & 980 from the roadside bus terminals along Admiralty Road West and Sembawang Road End were relocated to the new interchange, while Bus Services 859 & 981 had their routes extended to the interchange. On the same day, a new Bus Service 882 was also launched, covering the deleted sectors of Bus Service 167 to Sembawang Road End.

Summary of Post-Amendment Bus Routes in Sembawang (as of 20 Nov 2005):

• 167: Sembawang – Chong Pang – Upper Thomson Road – Orchard Road – Shenton Way – Bukit Merah
• 856: Yishun – Sembawang – Admiralty Road West – Woodlands
• 859: Sembawang – Yishun
• 882: Sembawang – Sembawang Park (Loop)
• 962: Woodlands – Sembawang – Admiralty Street (Loop)
• 980: Sembawang – Chong Pang – Upper Thomson Road – Little India – Beach Road – Lorong 1 Geylang
• 981: Sembawang – Senoko Industrial Estate (Uni-directional route on weekdays & Saturdays AM/PM Peak)

More detailed information for operational bus services can be found in the Historical Routes of Bus Services article.