Central Expressway, Singapore

Last updated

CTE-SG.svg
Central Expressway
Lebuhraya Tengah (Malay)
中央高速公路 (Chinese)
மத்திய விரைவுச்சாலை (Tamil)
Expressways and Semi-expressways of Singapore 2012.png
Central Expressway is labelled in single blue line
Route information
Length15.8 km (9.8 mi)
Existed1989–present
HistoryFirst section opened on 17 June 1989,
last section opened on 21 September 1991
Major junctions
South end Bukit Merah (AYE)
Major intersectionsSLE, TPE, ORRS (Braddell Road), PIE, NSC, AYE
North end Yio Chu Kang (SLE, TPE)
Location
Country Singapore
Regions Seletar, Ang Mo Kio, Serangoon, Kallang, Bishan, Toa Payoh, Central Area, Bukit Merah, Novena
Highway system
A long exposure of the CTE near Exit 7B (Jalan Bahagia). CTE Exit 7B.jpg
A long exposure of the CTE near Exit 7B (Jalan Bahagia).

The Central Expressway (CTE) in Singapore is the major highway connecting the city centre of Singapore with the northern residential parts of the island, including Toa Payoh, Bishan and Ang Mo Kio and further onwards to the Seletar Expressway and the Tampines Expressway.

Contents

As of 29 December 2013, SLE and CTE are one of the two pairs of expressways in Singapore which are linked together, the other being the KPE and MCE.

Route description

Beginning at a junction with the Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE) in Bukit Merah, the expressway runs northeast, passing through Outram and parallel to Chin Swee Road. The CTE then runs through two tunnels between Chin Swee Road and Bukit Timah Road, with an at-grade segment between Buyong Road and Cairnhill Circle, before continuing northeast, between Kallang and Novena. [1] The expressway then turns north, intersecting the Pan Island Expressway (PIE) and passing through Toa Payoh, Bishan and Ang Mo Kio before terminating at an interchange with the Seletar Expressway (SLE) and Tampines Expressway (TPE), [2] and measures 16 kilometres (9.9 miles). [3]

History

Construction

Work on the first phase of the CTE, between Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 and Thomson Road, commenced in July 1981. [4] Intended to alleviate heavy traffic along Upper Thomson Road, a 3 kilometres (1.9 miles) segment of the expressway between Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 and Jalan Toa Payoh opened in March 1983, [5] while the segment of expressway between Jalan Toa Payoh and Thomson Road was opened on 18 May 1985 by MP for Moulmein Lawrence Sia. [6] In August 1985, construction commenced on a 3 kilometres (1.9 miles), S$18 million segment of the expressway in Ang Mo Kio. [7] This segment of expressway was opened to traffic in January 1987, [8] while the 1.7 kilometres (1.1 miles) section between Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 and Yio Chu Kang Road was constructed between August 1986 [9] and November 1988. [10]

The contract for the second phase of the CTE was awarded in December 1987. This phase, which comprised 3.7 kilometres (2.3 miles) of expressway between Bukit Timah Road and Chin Swee Road, included two tunnels, with lengths of 0.7 kilometres (0.43 miles) and 1.7 kilometres (1.1 miles), [11] and involved the acquisition of land along Orchard Road and Clemenceau Avenue worth over S$20 million. [12] Work on the second phase commenced in June 1987, and the tunnels were constructed using the cut-and-cover method. [13] As the areas along the expressway's route were heavily built-up, precautions were taken to limit disruption to the public during construction, with the exclusive use of hydraulic piling machines and work near residential areas being paused at night. [14] In addition, cofferdams were built in the Singapore River to facilitate construction of the expressway tunnels, [15] and to prevent erosion, the river bed directly above the tunnels was covered with rocks. [14] The segment of expressway between Outram Road and the Ayer Rajah Expressway opened in September 1988, [16] but the construction of the tunnels was delayed, which the government attributed to a shortage of workers and "poor soil conditions near Cairnhill Circle". [17] Construction on the CTE's second phase was completed in May 1991, [18] and the opening of the two tunnels, which were named the Kampong Java and Chin Swee Tunnels, in September 1991 marked the completion of the expressway. [3]

Impact and expansion

Traffic volumes along the CTE rose after the expressway was fully opened, and in May 1994, the section of expressway between Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 and the PIE was expanded to eight lanes to ease traffic congestion. [19] A traffic monitoring system, the Expressway Monitoring and Advisory System, was introduced on the expressway in March 1998. [20] By the late 1990s, the CTE faced traffic congestion issues, and while a road pricing scheme was introduced to rectify the issue, it was unable to eliminate it. [21]

In 2008, a large-scale improvement of the CTE was initiated, and the first phase of the scheme, consisting of the expansion of the expressway between Ang Mo Kio Avenues 1 and 3, started in June 2008, and cost S$17 million. Subsequently, flyovers were constructed at the junction with the PIE to improve traffic flow, [22] while other sections of the CTE, between Bukit Timah Road and Yio Chu Kang Road, were widened, and the improvement scheme was completed by December 2011. [23]

Central Expressway near the Cavenagh Road exit in December 2005. Central Expressway, Dec 05.JPG
Central Expressway near the Cavenagh Road exit in December 2005.

List of interchanges and exits

Location [24] km [25]

[26] [27] [28] [29] [30] [31]

[32] 		mi Flyover [33] Exit [33] Destinations [33] Notes
Bukit Merah 00.0Radin Mas—Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg AYE (towards Tuas)Southern terminus, expressway continue as Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg AYE
No Access to Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg AYE (towards MCE)
0.70.43Bukit Merah1AJalan Bukit MerahSouthbound exit and northbound entrance only
1.40.87Outram1BOutram Road
Tiong Bahru Road
Outram 21.2Southern Portal of Chin Swee Tunnel
Singapore River 2.11.3—2Clemenceau AvenueNorthbound exit only
2.21.4—2Merchant RoadNorthbound exit and southbound entrance only
Both bounds exit 2 accessible via Eu Tong Sen Street and New Bridge Road
2.61.6—Havelock RoadSouthbound exit and northbound entrance only
Northbound entrance via Upper Cross Street
Both bounds exit 2 accessible via Eu Tong Sen Street and New Bridge Road
Orchard 3.82.4Northern Portal of Chin Swee Tunnel
42.5—4Orchard RoadSouthbound exit and northbound Entrance only
Newton 4.42.7Southern Portal of Kampong Java Tunnel
4.72.9—5Cairnhill CircleSouthbound exit and northbound Entrance only
Novena 5.23.2Northern Portal of Kampong Java Tunnel
5.53.4—6 Bukit Timah Road Southbound exit and northbound Entrance only
6.33.9—7AMoulmein RoadNorthbound exit and southbound entrance only
Southbound entrance via Balestier Road
6.84.2Moulmein7CBalestier Road (Northbound)
Moulmein Road		Southbound exit and northbound entrance only
Northbound entrance via Balestier Road (Southbound)
7.24.5—7DBalestier Road (Southbound)Southbound exit only
7.54.7—7BJalan BahagiaNorthbound exit only
Kallang 8.25.1Whampoa8ASingapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg PIE (towards Tuas)
Kim Keat Link
Lorong 6 Toa Payoh		Southbound exit and northbound entrance only
Toa Payoh 8.35.2Whampoa8BSingapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg PIE (towards Changi)
Upper Serangoon Road		Access via northbound exit
Signed as 8B in southbound direction
95.6Braddell10Braddell RoadAccess via northbound exit
Signed as 10 in southbound direction
Serangoon 10.16.38BSingapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg PIE (towards Changi)
Upper Serangoon Road		Access via southbound exit
Signed as 8B in northbound direction
10.26.310Braddell RoadAccess via southbound exit
Signed as 10 in northbound direction
Ang Mo Kio 11.37.0Ang Mo Kio South11Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1
12.67.8Ang Mo Kio Central12AAng Mo Kio Avenue 3Access via northbound exit
12.88.0Ang Mo Kio North12BAng Mo Kio Avenue 5Access via northbound exit
14.18.814Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5
Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3		Access via southbound exit
15.19.4Yio Chu Kang15Yio Chu Kang RoadNorthbound exit and southbound entrance only
Access to southbound exit and northbound entrance from Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg SLE & Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg TPE
15.39.5Yio Chu Kang &
Seletar		16Seletar West Link (towards Yishun Avenue 1)Northbound exit and southbound entrance only
Access to southbound exit and northbound entrance from Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg SLE & Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg TPE
15.49.6——Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg SLE (towards BKE)Northern terminus, expressway continues as Singapore road sign - Informatory - Expressway begins - Type II.svg SLE
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North–South MRT line</span> Mass Rapid Transit line in Singapore

The North–South Line (NSL) is a high-capacity Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line in Singapore, operated by SMRT Corporation. Coloured red on the Singapore rail map, the line is 45 kilometres (28 mi) long and serves 27 stations, 11 of which, between the Braddell and Marina South Pier stations, are underground. It runs from Jurong East station, located in Western Singapore, to Marina South Pier station in the Central Area, via Woodlands station in northern Singapore. The line operates for almost 20 hours a day, with headways of 1 to 2 minutes during peak hours and 5 to 6 minutes during off-peak hours. All the trains on the North–South Line run with a six-car formation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electronic Road Pricing</span> Singaporean toll collection scheme

The Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system is an electronic toll collection scheme adopted in Singapore to manage traffic by way of road pricing, and as a usage-based taxation mechanism to complement the purchase-based Certificate of Entitlement system. There are a total of 93 ERP gantries being built and located throughout the country, along expressways and roads leading towards the Central Area. As of July 2024, only 19 ERP gantries are in operation and are all in expressways where congestion continues to be severe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ang Mo Kio</span> Town in Singapore

Ang Mo Kio is a planning area and residential town situated in the Central Region of Singapore. Located approximately 11 km north of the Downtown Core district, Ang Mo Kio is the 3rd most populated planning area in the North-East region and ranks 8th in terms of population in the country overall. The planning area is located at the south-western corner of the North-East region, bordered by the planning areas of Yishun to the north, Sengkang to the north-east, Serangoon to the east, Bishan to the south and the Central Water Catchment to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kallang</span> Planning Area and HDB Town in Central Region, Singapore

Kallang is a planning area and residential zone located in the Central Region of Singapore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serangoon</span> Planning Area and HDB Town in North-East Region, Singapore

Serangoon is a planning area and residential town located in the North-East Region of Singapore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishan, Singapore</span> Planning Area and HDB Town in Central Region, Singapore

Bishan, also known as Peck San, Bishan New Town or Bishan Town, is a planning area and matured residential town located at the northernmost portion of the Central Region of Singapore. Statistically, the area is ranked the 38th biggest in terms of geographical size and the 22nd most populated planning area in the country. It is located at the most Central point of Singapore, and it comprises Upper Thomson, Marymount, Shunfu, Sin Ming, Bishan North and Bishan East. There are also many private residential properties in Bishan. Bishan is ranked 15th in terms of population density. Apart from its boundary with the Central Water Catchment in the west, Bishan borders three other planning areas: Ang Mo Kio to the north, Toa Payoh to the south, and Serangoon to the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City Hall MRT station</span> Mass Rapid Transit station in Singapore

City Hall MRT station is an underground Singapore Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) interchange station on the North–South line (NSL) and East–West line (EWL). Situated in the Downtown Core district, it is underneath Stamford Road near the road junctions with North Bridge Road and St Andrew's Road. The station is near landmarks such as the former City Hall, Raffles City, the Padang, St Andrew's Cathedral and the Cenotaph.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outram Park MRT station</span> Mass Rapid Transit station in Singapore

Outram Park MRT station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) interchange station in Singapore. The station is on the East–West, North East and Thomson–East Coast lines, and is located near the junction of Outram Road, Eu Tong Sen Street and New Bridge Road on the boundary of Bukit Merah and Outram planning areas. It is the closest MRT station to Singapore General Hospital, the Police Cantonment Complex, Outram Community Hospital and the Health Promotion Board. The station was included in the early plans of the MRT network in 1982; it was constructed as part of the Phase I MRT segment from Novena, and was completed in December 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pan Island Expressway</span> Road in Singapore

The Pan Island Expressway is the oldest and longest expressway in Singapore. It is also Singapore's longest road. The expressway runs from the East Coast Parkway near Changi Airport in the east to Tuas in the west and has a total length of 42.8 kilometres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ang Mo Kio Bus Interchange</span> Bus interchange in Ang Mo Kio, Singapore

Ang Mo Kio Bus Interchange is located in Ang Mo Kio Town Centre, Singapore. The interchange is within AMK Hub which is in turn linked to Ang Mo Kio MRT station via a pedestrian underpass below Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8. The interchange was opened by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seletar Expressway</span> Highway in Singapore

The Seletar Expressway is a highway in Singapore that traverses the northern end of the island and joins the Central Expressway (CTE) and the Tampines Expressway (TPE) in Seletar to the Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE) in Kranji.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orchard MRT station</span> Mass Rapid Transit station in Singapore

Orchard MRT station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) interchange station in Singapore, on the North South (NSL) and Thomson–East Coast (TEL) lines. Situated along Orchard Boulevard and underneath ION Orchard, the station serves various commercial and retail developments of the Orchard Road shopping district, including Liat Towers, Ngee Ann City, Wheelock Place, Wisma Atria and Shaw House, among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toa Payoh MRT station</span> Mass Rapid Transit station in Singapore

Toa Payoh MRT station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station on the North South line (NSL) in Toa Payoh, Singapore. Located in the town centre of Toa Payoh, it is integrated with the Toa Payoh Bus Interchange and the HDB Hub, headquarters of the Housing and Development Board. The station is underneath the intersection of three roads: Lorong 1 Toa Payoh, Lorong 2 Toa Payoh and Lorong 6 Toa Payoh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sengkang</span> Planning Area and HDB Town in North-East Region, Singapore

Sengkang is a planning area and residential town located in the North-East Region of Singapore. The town is the second most populous in the region, being home to 249,370 residents in 2020. Sengkang shares boundaries with Seletar and Punggol in the north, Pasir Ris and Paya Lebar in the east, Hougang and Serangoon to the south, as well as Yishun and Ang Mo Kio to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomson Road, Singapore</span> Road in Singapore

Thomson Road is a major trunk road linking Singapore's central business district with the northern suburban areas of the country. The road is one of the longest in Singapore, starting from Novena in the south towards MacRitchie Reservoir, before continuing northwards as Upper Thomson Road towards Yishun and Sembawang.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buangkok</span> Place in Singapore

Buangkok is a neighbourhood located in north eastern Singapore. The neighbourhood roughly encompasses the Trafalgar and Compassvale subzones of the Hougang and Sengkang Planning Areas respectively, as designated by the URA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicoll Highway</span> Major arterial road in Singapore

Nicoll Highway is a major arterial road in Singapore which links the junctions of Guillemard Road, Sims Way and Mountbatten Road in Kallang to the junctions of Esplanade Drive, Raffles Avenue and Stamford Road in the city. En route, it passes through the areas of Kallang, Kampong Glam and Marina Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North–South Corridor, Singapore</span> Future expressway and cycling path in Singapore

The North–South Corridor (NSC), originally conceptualised as the North-South Expressway (NSE), is an under-construction expressway that will be the 11th of Singapore's network of expressways when completed. The North South Corridor will serve increasing traffic along the north-south corridor that is currently served by the Central Expressway (CTE). The 21.5 kilometres (13.4 mi) expressway is expected to cost about S$7.47 billion when fully completed in 2029 as North-South Corridor and will connect the East Coast Parkway (ECP) with the northern parts of Singapore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kampong Java</span> Subzone of Kallang Planning Area in Central Region, Singapore

Kampong Java is a subzone within the planning area of Kallang, Singapore, as defined by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). It is bounded by the Central Expressway (CTE) in the west; Balestier Road in the north; Tessensohn Road, Race Course Road, Gloucester Road, Northumberland Road and Tekka Lane in the east; and Bukit Timah Road in the south.

Yeo Toon Chia is a Singaporean former politician. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he was the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Kampong Kapor Single Member Constituency from 1970 to 1976, the Ang Mo Kio Single Member Constituency from 1976 to 1991, and the Ang Mo Kio Group Representation Constituency representing the Ang Mo Kio division from 1991 to 1997.

References

  1. ↑ "CTE" (Map). OneMap. Singapore Land Authority. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  2. ↑ "CTE" (Map). OneMap. Singapore Land Authority. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  3. 1 2 Nathan, Dominic (22 September 1991). "CTE tunnels open, more being planned". The Straits Times. Singapore.
  4. ↑ Lam, Mo Lian (19 January 1983). "More expressways link S'pore". Singapore Monitor. Singapore. p. 1. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  5. ↑ "Central Expressway opens this morning". The Straits Times . Singapore. p. 3. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  6. ↑ "New expressway opens". Singapore Monitor. Singapore. 18 May 1985. p. 2. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  7. ↑ "S'pore firm awarded $18 m job to extend expressway". The Straits Times. Singapore. 31 July 1985. p. 8. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  8. ↑ "CTE section to be opened". The Straits Times. Singapore. 14 January 1987. p. 23. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  9. ↑ Lee, Han Shih. "First half of $600m CTE to be ready by Nov '87". Business Times . Singapore. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  10. ↑ "Central Expressway section to open". The Straits Times. Singapore. 25 November 1988. p. 27. Retrieved 21 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  11. ↑ "Underground tunnels to link two expressways". Straits Times (Overseas edition). Singapore. 5 December 1987. p. 3. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  12. ↑ Lee, Han Shih (18 April 1986). "Plan to acquire more than $20m worth of prime land". Business Times. Singapore. p. 16. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  13. ↑ Lee, Han Shih (2 March 1988). "Work starts soon on underground highway". Business Times. Singapore. p. 18. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  14. 1 2 Chia, Maylee (2 March 1988). "Huge PWD scheme will cut driving in city by 10 mins". The Straits Times. Singapore. p. 1. Retrieved 21 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  15. ↑ Dhaliwal, Rav (28 September 1988). "Work starts on Central Expressway tunnels". The Straits Times. Singapore. p. 12. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  16. ↑ "CTE section to open to traffic tomorrow". The Straits Times. Singapore. 24 September 1988. p. 12. Retrieved 20 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  17. ↑ "CTE project delayed". The Straits Times. Singapore. 1 September 1989. p. 26. Retrieved 21 August 2021– via NewspaperSG.
  18. ↑ "CTE project completed". The Straits Times. Singapore. 11 May 1991. p. 22.
  19. ↑ "Extra lanes for part of Central Expressway". The Straits Times. Singapore. 28 February 1994. p. 20.
  20. ↑ Yeo, Geraldine (22 March 1998). "Up-to-date information on all expressways from year 2000". The Straits Times. Singapore. p. 2.
  21. ↑ "Congestion on CTE "being studied"". The Straits Times. Singapore. 17 March 1999. p. 43.
  22. ↑ Tan, Christopher (10 October 2008). "2 flyovers for CTE to ease congestion". The Straits Times. Singapore. p. B4.
  23. ↑ Nanayakara, Daryll (29 November 2011). "New flyovers to ease CTE congestion". My Paper. Singapore. p. A4.
  24. ↑ "Master Plan". Urban Redevelopment Authority. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  25. ↑ "Start of CTE until CTE 1km sign post" (Map). Google Maps . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  26. ↑ "Start of CTE until CTE Chin Swee Tunnel South Portal" (Map). Google Maps . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  27. ↑ "CTE Chin Swee Tunnel South Portal until CTE northbound Exit 2" (Map). Google Maps . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  28. ↑ "CTE Chin Swee Tunnel South Portal until CTE southbound Exit 2" (Map). Google Maps . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  29. ↑ "CTE Chin Swee Tunnel South Portal until CTE Kampong Java Tunnel North Portal" (Map). Google Maps . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  30. ↑ "CTE Exit 5 until CTE Kampong Java Tunnel South Portal" (Map). Google Maps . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  31. ↑ "CTE Kampong Java Tunnel North Portal until CTE Exit 8B Southbound" (Map). Google Maps . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  32. ↑ "CTE Exit 10 Northbound until CTE End" (Map). Google Maps . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  33. 1 2 3 "OneMap" (Map). OneMap. Singapore: Singapore Land Authority. Retrieved 12 May 2021.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.