World of Pots: A trip down memory lane

Last year, my family and I took a stroll on a stretch of railway track in Upper Bukit Timah near the famous Rail Mall. The reason we visited the place was because the whole railway track from Woodlands to the train terminal at Tanjong Pagar Railway station would be demolished and southbound trains from Malaysia would no longer travel on this track to arrive at the heart of Singapore. We wanted to take a final walk at this historic railway line before it finally disappeared into history book. When we reached the destination, there was already a small crowd gathering at the place about to explore the railway track. We all carried our cameras with us to capture some historical moments.

The railway overhead bridge at Rail Mall

Why was the dismantling of this railway track so special as to attract a crowd to walk and explore it before it vanished into thin air? Why would people want to capture some memories of this place?

This is part of railway line that runs from Thailand to Malaysia and ends at Tanjong Pagar station at Singapore City Centre. The railway was built by the British before the war. For many years, the railway line serves as important transport route for the people of Malaysia and Singapore. However, after Singapore's separation from the Malaysian federation, the railway system remained in operation. The lands around the railway line remained under the control of the Rail operator, KTM of Malaysia. As a result, southbound trains from Malaysia would still travel deep into Singapore territory and stop at Tanjong Pagar station where the Immigration Offices of both countries were located. From here, passengers would alight to clear custom and immigration. This went on for years after Singapore's independence. The whole procedure seemed inappropriate as all countries of the world would have their immigration and custom checkpoint at the border. Singapore was the exception where the immigration checkpoint was at the heart of the Singapore City. The leaders of both countries had been on negotiations in the past decades to relocate the railway immigration checkpoint back to the border at Woodlands. In land scarce Singapore, to have the railway line cuts into Singapore in the middle, it affects development planning. Illegal activities on the KTM rail land were reported in the past. Residents who stayed near the railway line would grow vegetables and plant fruit tress on land belonged to KTM, the rail operator. Factory operators would dump wastes there. Others would use the land to breed ornamental fish for export. All these activities took place on the rail land as if there was no law and order there. Hence, the ideal solution was for KTM to relocate the rail station to Woodlands and return the land where the railway track was built to Singapore. As the matter was complicated and complex, the negotiations were however unsuccessful and no deals were made to relocate the immigration checkpoint.

After a change of leaderships on the Malaysian side, negotiations for the relocation of immigration checkpoint resumed. An agreement was finally reached between the two governments on this matter. A deal was reached such that Malaysia would give up the railway land in exchange for some land parcels in Singapore where both countries agreed to jointly develop. Both countries also agreed to build custom and immigration offices at Woodlands, the northern most part of Singapore. As the matter was finally settled, the railway track would have to go so was the railway station at Tanjong Pagar. The relocation of the checkpoint to Woodlands meant that the southbound trains from Malaysia would now stop at Woodlands. So the railway track from Woodlands to the City Centre became redundant and had to be dismantled. This was the reason why people flocked to this stretch of railway track still opened to the public before its demolition. Other parts of the railway line was already in the process of being removed. Some might not have taken the trains to Malaysia. Others might not have seen such a railway track and its surroundings. As a result, the KTM railway became an instant tourist attraction. It was indeed an eye opener for many young Singaporeans to wonder around the track freely as the train service had stopped. It was an opportunity not to miss as how often could anyone walk on the railway line without worrying about being hit by oncoming trains. Moreover, it was also a very good day trip for family members who enjoyed fresh air and sunshine.