The North East Line (NEL) Rail Bridging Service (or NEL free shuttle bus service / NEL Bridging Bus) is an emergency bus service which is provided in the event of a Train Service Disruption involving the North East Line SBS Transit
When a section of the North East Line is suspended, this service may be activated to ferry affected commuters between affected stations, hence minimizing the impact of rail disruptions on commuters. This service may also be activated should there be a significant addition of expected travelling time along the NEL.
14119 Opp VivoCity NE1 CC29 Telok Blangah Rd
10018 Outram Pk Stn Exit 6/SGH EW16 NE3 TE17 Eu Tong Sen St
05013 Chinatown Stn Exit C NE4 DT19 Eu Tong Sen St
04222 Clarke Quay Stn Exit E NE5 Eu Tong Sen St
08057 Dhoby Ghaut Stn NS24 NE6 CC1 Orchard Rd
40019 Little India Stn NE7 DT12 Bt Timah Rd
07211 Aft Farrer Pk Stn Exit G NE8 S'goon Rd
60121 Boon Keng Stn/Blk 102 NE9 S'goon Rd
60261 Potong Pasir Stn Exit C NE10 Upp S'goon Rd
61031 Woodleigh Stn Exit B NE11 Upp S'goon Rd
62131 Serangoon Stn Exit H NE12 CC13 Upp S'goon Rd
63031 Kovan Stn Exit B NE13 Upp S'goon Rd
64009 Hougang Ctrl Int B6 NE14 Hougang Ctrl
67609 Buangkok Stn Exit A NE15 Sengkang Ctrl
67009 Sengkang Int B1 NE16 STC Sengkang Sq
65211 Blk 274A NE17 PTC Punggol Pl
65729 Punggol Coast Stn NE18 New Punggol Rd
65729 Punggol Coast Stn NE18 New Punggol Rd
65009 Punggol Temp Int B5 NE17 PTC Punggol Pl
67009 Sengkang Int B2 NE16 STC Sengkang Sq
67601 Buangkok Stn Exit B NE15 Sengkang Ctrl
64009 Hougang Ctrl Int B4 NE14 Hougang Ctrl
63039 Kovan Stn Exit C NE13 Upp S'goon Rd
62139 Serangoon Stn Exit A/Blk 413 NE12 CC13 Upp S'goon Rd
61039 Woodleigh Stn Exit A NE11 Upp S'goon Rd
60269 Potong Pasir Stn Exit B NE10 Upp S'goon Rd
60119 Opp Boon Keng Stn NE9 Bendemeer Rd
Little India Stn Exit E NE7 DT12 Race Course Road
08031 Dhoby Ghaut Stn Exit B NS24 NE6 CC1 Penang Rd
04239 Opp Clarke Quay Stn NE5 New Bridge Rd
05049 Chinatown Stn Exit E NE4 DT19 New Bridge Rd
05069 Outram Pk Stn Exit 4 EW16 NE3 TE17 New Bridge Rd
14141 HarbourFront Stn/Vivocity NE1 CC29 Telok Blangah Rd
Activation:
When the NEL bridging bus service is activated along a specific stretch of the NEL, information will be disseminated through SBS Transit and the Land Transport Authority (LTA)’s media platforms. The service will only stop at specific bus boarding points (either at bus stops, bus interchanges, or roadside bus boarding points) which are marked out in the ticket concourse of every station.
This service is offered for free, in addition to free boarding of regular bus services during a disruption.
Route
Route Map towards Punggol Coast:
Route Map towards HarbourFront:
Technical Information
Route Telok Blangah Rd (HarbourFront MRT) ↔ New Punggol Rd (Punggol Coast MRT)
Passes Through Specific North East Line
Fare Free Travel
Operator Information
Current Operator SBS Transit Ltd
Current Fleet Any Public Bus
Departure Times Activated and withdrawn only when disseminated
Routes are compiled based on observations during a rail disruption.
Operator Information
NE1 HarbourFront – NE18 Punggol Coast (Service 472)SBS Transit Ltd
MRT Stations Served:
History of Activation: (before 2017)
This list is not exhaustive.
History of NEL Bridging Bus activations (2012–2017)
Date Sector Served Disruption Reason
15 Mar 2012
HarbourFront ↔ Dhoby Ghaut
Power Fault(Broken overhead catenary wire)
17 Aug 2012
HarbourFront ↔ Punggol
Traction Power Fault & reduced peak-hour frequency
10 Jan 2013
HarbourFront ↔ Outram Park
Power Fault(Broken U-bolts caused overhead catenary misalignment and power trip)
4 June 2013
Outram Park ↔ Dhoby Ghaut
Power Fault
22 Mar 2014
Dhoby Ghaut ↔ Sengkang
(Fault quickly resolved; few buses deployed)
6 Apr 2014
Dhoby Ghaut ↔ Potong Pasir
Power Fault
21 Aug 2014
Buangkok ↔ Punggol
Power Fault (dislocated cantilever arms)
18 Feb 2015
Chinatown ↔ Potong Pasir
—
8 Sep 2015
Punggol ↔ Buangkok
Signalling Fault
13 Oct 2015
Farrer Park ↔ Hougang
Power Fault & blackouts(Malfunctioned electrical switchgear caused power trip)
26 Oct 2015
HarbourFront ↔ Punggol
Arcing-induced breakage of overhead catenary wire leading to delayed launching of trains onto the mainline
21 Apr 2016
Chinatown ↔ Farrer Park
—
29 Jul 2016
Potong Pasir ↔ Punggol
Train Fault at Buangkok
17 Aug 2016
Punggol ↔ Buangkok
Train Fault
14 Nov 2016
HarbourFront ↔ Dhoby Ghaut
—
3 Oct 2017
Punggol ↔ Buangkok
Train Fault
16 Nov 2017
Outram Park ↔ Farrer Park
Train Fault
History of Activation: (since 2018)
Date Sector Served Disruption Reason
11 Apr 2018
Outram Park ↔ Potong Pasir
Train Fault at Little India
15 Oct 2018
Farrer Park ↔ Potong Pasir
Power Fault
27 Feb 2020
Punggol ↔ Buangkok &↔ Hougang
Power Fault(Broken overhead catenary wire at Sengkang depot reception track)
28 Mar 2021
Serangoon ↔ Punggol
Power Fault(Damaged overhead catenary wire at Buangkok Station)
28 Dec 2021
HarbourFront ↔ Punggol
Train Fault
23 Jan 2022
Serangoon ↔ Punggol
Train Fault at Sengkang
29 Mar 2023
Serangoon ↔ Punggol
Signalling Fault at Sengkang
10 Feb 2025
Dhoby Ghaut ↔ Punggol Coast
Signalling Fault at Buangkok
Gallery:
SBS Transit Volvo MkIV DM (SBS916J) – North East Line Bridging Bus
SBS6067U – NEL Bridging Service (October 2018)
North East Line MRT Shuttle Service – SBS Transit Mercedes-Benz Citaro (SBS6171B)
North East Line Free Bridging Bus – SBS Transit Scania K230UB (SBS8700L)
North East Line Free Bridging Bus – SBS Transit Mercedes-Benz Citaro (SBS6774L)
North East Line Free Bridging Bus – SBS Transit Volvo B9TL Wright (SG5506m)
North East Line Power Fault – 27 Feb 2020: Free Bridging Bus
North East Line Power Fault – 27 Feb 2020: Free Bridging Bus
North East Line Free Bridging Bus – SBS Transit MAN A22 (SMB3125P)
External Links & References
Back to Rail Bridging Services
This could receive a few modifications and become a full fledge route.
1. Skip hougang and sengkang int and serves bus stops near it instead.
2. Start from harbourfront int
3. Serve more bus stops along the way