Buses around Marina Centre, Nicoll Highway and Collyer Quay start skipping stops from Tuesday, 6 October, and roads around the Padang close from 12.01am on Wednesday, as Singapore gets ready for this weekend’s Formula 1 Grand Prix. The changes last until early on Tuesday, 13 October, and they affect people working, shopping or changing buses in the area as much as race-goers.
Buses that skip stops from today
Skipped stops apply from Tuesday, 6 October, to Monday, 12 October, and bus arrival information for diverted services will not be available during that period.
The first stop to go is Esplanade Bridge (02111). From today, services 10, 57, 70, 100, 107, 130, 131, 167, 196, 647, 648, 650, 652, 656, 660, 660M, 663 and 665 no longer stop there. Most of the other affected stops drop out from Wednesday, 7 October.
A few stops change on specific days:
- The Float @ Marina Bay stop (02051) has been closed since 4 August and stays closed until 12 October.
- Nicoll Highway Station (80169) is skipped from 1pm on 9, 10 and 11 October. The stop opposite it (80161) is skipped from 7pm on those days.
- City Hall Exit B (04167) is skipped from 9pm on 9, 10 and 11 October.
- Services 502A and 518A end at the Raffles Hotel stop (02049), for alighting only.
Morning commuters on the Collyer Quay side keep some service. Services 10, 10e, 70, 196 and 196e still call at OUE Bayfront and Opposite War Memorial Park from 5.30am to 10am on 7, 8 and 9 October. On 12 October those stops are served from 5.30am to 10am and again from 5pm to 8.30pm.
Thirty-six SBS Transit services skip stops, and service 681 is diverted, 37 services in all. Service 195 will start from Kampong Bahru Bus Terminal from 7 to 12 October.
Last trains on race nights
Trains run later on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 9 to 11 October.
- North-South and East-West Lines: the last trains leave City Hall at 12.30am on Friday and Saturday nights and 12.45am on Sunday night.
- Circle Line: last train from Marina Bay at 11.57pm (12.12am on Sunday); from HarbourFront at 11.30pm (11.45pm on Sunday).
- Thomson-East Coast Line: last train from Woodlands North at 12am (12.15am on Sunday); from Bayshore at 12.12am (12.27am on Sunday).
- North East Line, Downtown Line and the Sengkang and Punggol LRT: 30 minutes later than usual on Friday and Saturday, and 45 minutes later on Sunday.
There is no extension for the Bukit Panjang LRT or the Changi Airport branch. LTA lists 55 bus services that will run later on those nights. Jurong East services 143M, 333, 334 and 335, for example, run until 1.50am, or 2.05am on Sunday night.
Roads and the hours they open
Roads around Marina Centre and the Padang close progressively from 12.01am on Wednesday, 7 October, and are fully reopened by 5.30am on Tuesday, 13 October.
Some stretches open for the weekday morning peak. From 5.30am to 10am on 7, 8 and 9 October, drivers heading to Orchard Road can use Collyer Quay, St Andrew’s Road and Stamford Road, and those heading to Shenton Way or Orchard Road can use Nicoll Highway to Esplanade Drive or Stamford Road. On 7 and 8 October, Republic Boulevard to Raffles Avenue and Bayfront Avenue also opens towards Marina Boulevard. On Monday, 12 October, a different set of roads opens from 5.30am to 10am and again from 5pm to 8.30pm.
Marina Centre stays reachable through Rochor Road to Temasek Boulevard throughout. A single Access Lane along Raffles Boulevard also opens at set hours, though not to buses or vehicles with W, X or Y plates:
- 7 and 8 October: midnight to 6am, 10am to 5pm, and 10pm to midnight
- 9 October: midnight to 6am, 10am to 4pm, and 11pm to midnight
- 10 and 11 October: midnight to 1pm
- 12 October: midnight to 6am, 10am to 5pm, and 10pm to midnight
Taxis, private-hire cars and parking
Taxis and motorcycles can use the Access Lane at any time except during F1 track activity, though LTA may restrict access if traffic builds up. Private-hire cars pick up only at designated points.
Taxi trips starting from the listed F1 taxi points on Friday to Sunday, 9 to 11 October, carry an additional S$8 surcharge on top of the metered fare and other surcharges.
Office workers and shoppers who drive can still park at Suntec City, Millenia Walk and Marina Square. The Singapore Flyer, Esplanade, Singapore Recreation Club, Singapore Cricket Club and Empress Place car parks are closed.
All pedestrian underpasses and overhead bridges in the area stay open throughout the closures.
