As I typed this entry out, the last KTM train had already left Singapore shores, ending Tanjong Pagar Railway Station's 80 years of service in the rail transport between Singapore and Malaysia.
The closure of the railway station probably meant little to many people, especially to the younger generations of Singaporeans where history means nothing to them, and to the many Malaysians who use KTM trains to traverse between workplace and home on a daily basis, and simply see them as another mode of transport. To them, life goes on after today, KTM trains continue to run in Malaysia, nothing has changed.
To be honest, the closure of the station doesn't affect me much either. I don't travel to Malaysia often, and even if I do, I can do so by plane, by bus, or by hopping on the train at Woodlands Train Checkpoint. I will probably never feel as much as those who used the station to commute between the two countries, or couples who first met at the station, or students who came here all alone in search of better lives.
I am, however, quite a bit of a history lover, and I have always been disappointed at how Singapore chooses to tear down meaningful old buildings for another condominium or shopping mall, or on paper, conserves the building, but in actual fact only keeps exteriors untouched but alters the interiors to look nothing like what it was before. I do understand the need for Singapore to keep up with development, but sometimes I wish things can just slow down a little.
Moreover the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, together with the accompanying Bukit Timah Railway Station and the entire stretch in Singapore, are more than just buildings and bridges and tracks. If the Tiger on our Coat of Arms is a symbolic representation of Singapore's historical links with Malaysia, then the railway station must be the physical representation.
More than just a railway station, Tanjong Pagar is a physical example of this interesting and important but complex and delicate relationship that the two countries struggles to maintain. In a place where people cross borders by entering the destination country before leaving the host country, in a place where it is located in a land mass with clearly defined borders belonging to one country, yet the very land it sits on belongs to a neighbouring country, in a place where one feels like he has just went back in time the moment he steps in because of all the differences in architecture, style, feel, etc, it takes more than a short history lesson to understand how and why all these came about.
Lastly, this is also in line with a little wish of mine I made
at the start of the year to see more of Singapore. I would love to travel around the world in my lifetime [starting with my Student Exchange Programme which I really hope I can go], and I think I shouldn't go around understanding other countries if I don't know my own one well yet.
My plans to take the train came as early as last year when news about the closure first broke out. Having never taken a train before, I did not want the station to close before I even had a chance to board one from there. But the plans did not materialise until this year when my friend suggested going to the station to take photos.
My original plan involved taking a train up the East on the so-called Jungle Line, apparently because it is a more scenic route, and my destination were to be a small town near Kuantan where an uncle of mine lived. I used to go there when I was very young, but I have practically zero recollection of the place now, so I want to go there again. Unfortunately the Jungle Line doesn't really pass by there, and I don't think I can convince anyone to make the trip with me. To keep things simple and travel costs low, I therefore settled for an easier-to-plan but less scenic ride on the West Coast Line instead.
Besides the actual train ride I also went to 'walk the grounds' with another group of friends, twice, covering the two railway stations, and various level crossings where rails and roads intersect.
The first thing we noticed when we entered Tanjong Pagar Railway Station was how poorly ventilated it was. There were neither air-conditioning nor fans, just doors. I joked that when the station was first built in 1932 there were no signs of global warming yet. But I guessed that the station was not meant for people to stay for an extended period of time, but just a place for people to depart or arrive and leave. Yet within the station there exists intricate pieces of art, from wall murals to stone figures, these pieces depict the major pillars of the Malayan economy in the olden days, adding culture and depth to an otherwise lifeless building, and very well contradicts my earlier statement that its not a place one stays to appreciate them.
By contrast, Bukit Timah Railway Station looks like a godforsaken building hidden away from view. Walking along the main road one can only see the short but nonetheless magnificent steel bridge; the only hint of a railway station nearby is a insignificant signboard that has been vandalised.
Bukit Timah Railway Station might not have the prestige and elegance of its bigger cousin at Tanjong Pagar, but it stands on its own with a quiet and calming effect without any of the city hustle and bustle that we are already so used to. Or at least that was the case when I was there the first time on a weekday where there were no one else around.
The second time I went on a weekend, and it felt like a tourist attraction.Although no longer used by commuters to board or alight from the train, the station was still staffed with a friendly KTM station master whose job was to ensure that there was only one train on the single track that ran the majority of the Singapore stretch. It is there where he passed the famous ring token to a passing train to indicate that the track was free for use. If the track was not available, the train would stop on a secondary track at the station to wait for its turn.
The signalling room where the station master directs trains to move to which trackThe first time I was there, the train went past the station with such speed that I was slightly taken aback from all the turbulence. There was no such thing the second time because the train slowed down for the safety of many there to take photos.
There were five [I think] level crossings in Singapore where trains crossed our roads. KTM personnel were stationed at these crossings, and whenever a train were to cross, these personnel would direct the traffic, either automatically or manually, to ensure trains could cross safely.
Example of a manual crossing where the KTM personnel would manually push the gates to block off the road.An automatic crossing where a push of a button brought the barriers down and changed the traffic lights accordingly.Another automatic crossing. Its a small but busy road.Unfortunately we did not have all the time in the world to wait for a train to pass. These train crossings are a rare sight in Singapore and with the closure of the Singapore stretch of the rail network, we can never see these train crossings in action anymore.
