RTS Link Test Ride: Malaysia To Singapore In Six Minutes
A trip from Johor Baru to Singapore could soon take as little as six minutes – media who rode the RTS Link on Monday (17 Aug) experienced that firsthand, as the cross-border rail project enters its final integration testing stage ahead of a 2027 launch.
- The RTS Link test ride from Bukit Chagar to Woodlands North takes six to eight minutes, with a 2027 passenger service target.
- The system is designed for 10,000 passengers per hour each way, serving the 350,000 people crossing the Causeway daily.
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All station and rail infrastructure on the Malaysian side of the RTS Link has been completed, said Transport Minister Anthony Loke.
The project is now in its final integration testing stage between Malaysia and Singapore, ahead of passenger service targeted for 2027.
Members of the media took a test ride on the RTS Link on 18 August, and the trip from Bukit Chagar to Woodlands North took six to eight minutes each way.
The trains have four cars, with window seating similar to Singapore’s MRT trains and space for standing commuters.
Passengers travelling to Singapore will scan their tickets at gantries in the departure hall, then proceed upstairs for baggage checks, body scans, and immigration clearance.
RTS Link project director Zulkifli Mohamed said Malaysian immigration clearance is expected to take only seconds, processed through 100 e-gates at the Bukit Chagar Immigration, Customs and Quarantine (ICQ) facility using QR codes or passport scans. Singapore-bound travellers will clear immigration the same way, through the Republic’s smart lanes.
The ICQ complex also has body scanners that detect prohibited items as travellers walk through. If the scanner flags something, the traveller is directed to a second counter for further checks so the queue isn’t disrupted.
The facility additionally houses a nursing room, a surau, self-service ticket kiosks, and space for the Border Control and Protection Agency and the Malaysian Quarantine and Inspection Services Department.
Capacity and Ridership Projections
The RTS Link is a 4km shuttle service connecting Bukit Chagar in Johor Baru to Woodlands North in Singapore, which links into the city-state’s MRT network.
The system is designed to handle 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction, with daily ridership projected at 40,000.
It is expected to serve the 350,000 people who currently cross the Causeway daily, one of the busiest border crossings in the world.
Loke did not confirm an exact launch date or fare. Both will be announced jointly with Singapore’s transport ministry.
“As this is a bilateral project between Malaysia and Singapore, the official announcement in terms of the actual date of operation and the fare will be announced concurrently together between Malaysia and Singapore,” he told reporters at Bukit Chagar station.
“I can assure you the ongoing discussion is very positive, so we will finalise it, then we will make a joint announcement with my counterpart from Singapore soon,” he said.
Rail operator RTS Operations was expected to present proposed fare rates in the third quarter of this year, Loke said in April, The Star reported. An earlier NST report in February, citing Sin Chew Daily, said fares were expected to be announced in the second half of 2026 and could range between S$5 and S$7 (RM15.87 to RM22.22) per trip.
RTS Link project director Zulkifli Mohamed had indicated a 1 January 2027 start date during a media briefing on Monday, though Loke stopped short of confirming this.
Connecting The Rest Of The City
Loke also outlined plans to plug the RTS Link into Johor Baru’s wider transport network.
An overhead bridge linking the station to JB Sentral and nearby malls, including Komtar JBCC and Johor Bahru City Square, is already done.
This includes 200 additional buses on routes to nearby residential areas once the RTS Link opens, and a RM60 million bridge connecting directly to the KTM station at JB Sentral, expected to take 12 months to build.
“When this bridge is completed, passengers who take the KTM commuter train can access the RTS Link directly without needing to walk long distances,” Loke said.
Ten new train sets are also in the works for the southern shuttle service.
READ MORE: [Watch] Malaysians Keep Walking The Causeway, A Sign Was Not Going To Stop Them
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