15 January 2006 - Buangkok Station along the North East Line began revenue service at 1pm today following a whole morning of fun and games.

The children of Buangkok took part in an art competition where they were asked to put down on art paper what Buangkok meant to them as their home. These art pieces will be displayed in the station for the next one month.

The five hour long festivities started in the morning with a walk-a-jog led by Guest-of-Honour, Mr Teo Chee Hean, Minister for Defence. Subsequently, together with Minister Teo, residents were invited to participate in a joint opening ceremony where they were asked to cut a 240m long ribbon surrounding the station. Jointly organised by SBS Transit and the Punggol South Constituency, the celebrations included a large carnival where residents took part in activities like a woodball tournament, archery and other interactive games.

The commencement of revenue service at Buangkok Station comes two-and-a-half years after the official launch of NEL. It had been delayed due to the lack of housing development in the vicinity of Buangkok. Earlier projections were that there should be a minimum of 2,000 dwelling units within a 400m radius in order for the station to be viable. And while that figure has yet to be reached, a steady rise in NEL ridership coupled with significant cost control efforts, have made it possible for SBS Transit to open the station for revenue service now.

The opening meant that residents will now have a direct link to town via the rail system. With the Chinese New Year just two weeks away, residents now enjoy a hassle free travel to Chinatown for their New Year shopping.

Mr Ong Boon Leong, Executive Director, SBS Transit said, "We are very pleased to be working closely with the grassroots leaders of Punggol South in celebrating this occasion and look forward to better serving the residents of Punggol South. We certainly hope that residents in the area will take the effort to walk to the station and make full use of it."

Mr Charles Chong, MP for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC who has been lobbying for Buangkok MRT to be opened said, "I am very pleased that the station would be opened earlier than anticipated and thanked residents for their patience and many others whose hard work and sacrifices have made today's opening a reality."

Buangkok Station officially commenced revenue service at 1.00pm today. The station will be opened daily from 0530hrs to 0035hrs with the first train leaving the station at 0546hrs and last train arriving at 0022hrs. The train service frequency is targeted at 4 mins during peak hours and 6.5 mins during non-peak hours. The fare will be pegged to distance, following the existing fare structure with the rest of the stations in NEL.

Bus Services 27 and 43 will continue to serve Buangkok Station.