RTS Link Johor Bahru–Singapore 2026: opening date, stations, fares and what it changes

The short answer

The Johor Bahru–Singapore RTS Link is a 4 km driverless light rail shuttle between Bukit Chagar in Johor Bahru and Woodlands North in Singapore. The trip takes about five minutes, and you clear both countries’ immigration once, at the station you leave from.

It will not open in 2026. On 2 October 2026, Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) and Malaysia’s Ministry of Transport said passenger service is “now expected” to start in February 2027. That date still depends on an independent safety certificate and final approvals from both governments (LTA, 2 Oct 2026).

Fares have not been announced. Malaysia’s Transport Minister said on 20 October 2026 that they should be announced before the end of 2026 (AsiaOne, 20 Oct 2026).

Map: station positions and the line’s alignment come from OpenStreetMap (checked 28 October 2026). The line is drawn as mapped by volunteers while still under construction; it is indicative.

Where the opening date stands

The target has moved several times. Here is what each side said, and when.

Date	What happened	Source
22 Jan 2021	Construction starts at Woodlands North, after the project resumed in July 2020	LTA
24 Mar 2023	LTA gives “end of 2026” as the opening target	LTA
30 Jun 2025	First train unveiled; service targeted “by December 2026”	Singapore MOT
26 Dec 2025	First test run on the main line, from the Wadi Hana depot to the border	paultan.org, 31 Dec 2025
4 Feb 2026	First train reaches Woodlands North on a demonstration run	carz.com.my, Feb 2026
3 Apr 2026	Malaysia’s minister says the project is on track for January 2027	AsiaOne, 4 Apr 2026
2 Oct 2026	Joint statement: service now expected in February 2027	LTA
31 Dec 2026	Planned end of final system tests and trial runs	LTA
Feb 2027	Expected start of passenger service (no exact day given)	LTA

Where things stood in late October 2026. According to the joint statement, the stations, viaduct and tunnel are “substantially complete” in both countries. What remains is testing. The operator, RTS Operations (RTSO), expects to finish its final system tests and trial runs by 31 December 2026. An independent safety assessor must then certify the system, and both governments must review that certificate before they allow passengers on board.

Singapore’s Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow said the aim is to start before Hari Raya Puasa, expected around 10 March 2027 (AsiaOne, 3 Oct 2026). That is a target, not a date. Until both governments publish an exact day, treat “February 2027” as an expectation.

The line in figures

		Source
Length	About 4 km	LTA
Stations	Bukit Chagar (JB) and Woodlands North (SG), no stop in between	LTA
Journey time	About 5 minutes	LTA
Capacity	Up to 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction at peak	LTA
Trains	8 driverless four-car trains, more than 600 passengers each	Singapore MOT, 30 Jun 2025
Peak frequency	Every 3.6 minutes, as reported by the press; not in an official document we found (not yet confirmed from the official text)	NST, 30 Jun 2025
Top speed	80 km/h	AsiaOne, 4 Apr 2026
Strait crossing	25 m-high bridge over the Straits of Johor	LTA
Operator	RTS Operations Pte Ltd, a joint venture of Prasarana (Malaysia) and SMRT (Singapore)	LTA
Depot	Wadi Hana, Johor Bahru	LTA
Expected ridership	About 40,000 passengers a day	The Star, 18 Aug 2026
Fare	Not announced	AsiaOne, 20 Oct 2026
Operating hours	Not officially announced; 6 am to midnight reported by the press (not yet confirmed from the official text)	carz.com.my, Feb 2026

Immigration: clear once, at departure

Both stations have their own customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) buildings, separate from the Causeway and Second Link checkpoints. Singapore and Malaysian officers work side by side at each end. You clear both countries’ checks at the station you leave from, and walk out without a second check at the other end (LTA).

In practice: going to Singapore, you clear Malaysian exit and Singapore entry at Bukit Chagar. Going to JB, you clear both at Woodlands North. Passports, visas and the usual entry rules still apply. The trip only changes where the checks happen.

Fares: what has been said, and what has not

No official fare exists yet. Here is everything on the record.

February 2026: Malaysia’s Transport Minister Anthony Loke gave an estimate of about S$5 to S$7 (RM15.50 to RM21.70) per trip. He said Singapore would not subsidise the service (NST, 18 Feb 2026). This was an estimate, not an approved price.
April 2026: the operator was to present proposed fares to both governments in the third quarter. Malaysia’s Land Public Transport Agency (APAD) and Singapore’s LTA must agree before any fare is published (AsiaOne, 4 Apr 2026).
August 2026: fare and opening date will be announced jointly by the two countries (The Star, 18 Aug 2026).
20 October 2026: “I cannot make any unilateral announcement because it is a bilateral project,” Loke said. He expects fares to be announced by the end of 2026 (AsiaOne).

Not known yet: the actual fare, whether it differs by direction or currency, payment methods, and any monthly pass. Loke said in April that a season pass is a matter of “commercial viability” to be discussed with the operator.

Connections at each end

Singapore side. Woodlands North RTS station is underground, linked at basement level to the Woodlands North station of the Thomson-East Coast Line (TE1). From there, the line runs south through the city (LTA).

Johor Bahru side. Bukit Chagar is next to JB Sentral, which has KTM trains and a bus hub.

The government will spend RM60 million on a direct link so KTM passengers can reach Bukit Chagar without leaving JB Sentral. It is a 12-month project. A pedestrian bridge will also link the station to the bus hub (NST, 18 Aug 2026). The article gives no start date, so the link may not be ready on opening day (not yet confirmed from the official text).
Extra bus services are planned when the RTS Link opens, and the government is working on at least 200 new buses for Johor Bahru under its stage bus programme (same source).
Elevated ART: the federal Cabinet approved an RM10 billion elevated autonomous rapid transit (E-ART) project for Johor Bahru in May 2026 (The Star, 17 May 2026). As of July 2026, its financing was still being finalised before a concession could be signed (The Star, 2 Jul 2026). The minister has said it would take about four years from the award. It will not be running when the RTS Link opens. [CHECK: The Star pages to reopen before publication.]

The old KTM Shuttle Tebrau. The bilateral agreement says the JB Sentral–Woodlands shuttle train must stop six months after the RTS Link starts. In April 2026, Malaysia asked Singapore to let it run longer for a while. No decision had been reported (paultan.org, 7 Apr 2026).

The Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ), in facts

The RTS Link is often mentioned together with the JS-SEZ. They are separate projects.

Signed: the JS-SEZ agreement was exchanged on 7 January 2025 at the Malaysia-Singapore Leaders’ Retreat (Singapore EDB, 8 Jan 2025).
Size: 3,505 sq km in southern Johor, with 9 flagship zones and 11 target sectors (The Star, 8 Jan 2025). Other sources give slightly different areas.
Flagship zones: Johor Bahru City Centre, Iskandar Puteri, Tanjung Pelepas-Tanjung Bin, Pasir Gudang, Senai-Skudai, Sedenak, Forest City, Pengerang and Desaru (MIDA, 27 Jan 2025). Bukit Chagar sits in the JB city centre area.
Tax incentives, from 1 January 2025: a 5% corporate tax rate for up to 15 years for qualifying new investment, and a 15% income tax rate for 10 years for eligible “knowledge workers” employed in the zone (same MIDA source). Eligibility rules apply. These are company and employment incentives. They do not give tax breaks for buying a home.
Stated goals: 20,000 skilled jobs and 50 projects in five years, 100 projects within ten years (same MIDA source). These are targets, not results.

What changes for people who live or work there

What the official figures allow us to say:

Crossing time. The rail trip itself is about five minutes, plus the time to clear immigration once. How long queues will be at peak hours is not known before opening.
A second rail option. The KTM Shuttle Tebrau carries up to 8,635 passengers a day (paultan.org, 7 Apr 2026). The RTS Link is designed for up to 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction at peak.
Rail-to-rail in Singapore. A passenger arriving at Woodlands North can change directly to the Thomson-East Coast Line.
Getting to Bukit Chagar. On the JB side, the station depends on buses, KTM, cars and e-hailing until the E-ART is built. Plan for road traffic around JB Sentral.

What is still open: fares, hours, timetable, payment methods, parking at Bukit Chagar, and how many people will use the line.

Property near Bukit Chagar: what has actually been published

There is no official price index for the streets around Bukit Chagar. Malaysia’s property data agency NAPIC publishes state and district figures, not station-level ones. What exists is below, with its limits.

Land near the station. In May 2025, the head of a Johor valuation firm said some land “next to RTS” had changed hands at up to RM1,000 per sq ft (EdgeProp, 22 May 2025). This is one professional’s statement, not published transaction data.
Johor homes, first half of 2026. NAPIC’s Southern Region report is reported to show 17,871 residential transactions in Johor worth RM9.10 billion, down 15.1% in volume and 7.7% in value from a year earlier, and rents up 11% to 12% at some well-connected serviced apartments near the JB city centre (iQI, citing NAPIC H1 2026). [CHECK: we could not open the NAPIC report itself on 28 October 2026; figures to be confirmed against napic.jpph.gov.my before publication.]
Asking prices are not sale prices. Listing portals show asking prices around Bukit Chagar. These are what sellers hope for, not what buyers paid, so we do not quote them.

We make no forecast. The line has not opened, and no official data yet shows its effect on prices or rents.

FAQ

When does the RTS Link open? Passenger service is expected in February 2027, according to the joint statement of 2 October 2026. No exact day has been announced, and the date still depends on safety certification and approvals (LTA).

How much will a ticket cost? Not announced. Malaysia’s Transport Minister estimated S$5 to S$7 per trip in February 2026, and said on 20 October 2026 that fares should be announced by the end of 2026.

Where are the stations? Bukit Chagar is on Jalan Tun Abdul Razak in Johor Bahru, next to JB Sentral. Woodlands North is in Singapore, next to Woodlands North MRT on the Thomson-East Coast Line. These are the only two stations.

Do I clear immigration twice? No. Both countries’ checks are at the departure station. You clear once, then arrive without a second check.

How long is the trip? About five minutes on the train, over a 4 km line. Add the time to clear immigration.

Will the KTM Shuttle Tebrau keep running? The current agreement says it stops six months after the RTS Link opens. Malaysia has asked Singapore to allow a temporary extension; no decision had been reported as of October 2026.

What we do not cover

Investment advice, price forecasts or expected rental returns.
Financing or loans.
Visa, work-pass or residency rules for either country. Check with the Immigration Department of Malaysia and Singapore’s ICA.
Timetables, fares and hours until they are officially published. We will update this page when they are.

Last checked: 28 October 2026. Sources are listed next to each figure.