A MOMENT IN

PART ONE

TIME

TANJONG PAGAR RAILWAY STATION

TANJONG PAGARRAILWAY STATION

what about monuments?

5 – 6

7 – 8

9 – 12

what’s the history behind it?

CONTENTS

A MOMENT IN TIME

what are the architectural details?

55

Where joy, happiness and

tears were captured in

that moment.

Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, previously known as Keppel Road Railway Station, located along Keppel Road, used to be the main passenger station for trains run by the Malaysian main rail operator Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) Berhad travelling between Singapore and Malaysia. The building was opened in 1932 to serve as the southern terminus for the West Coast line of the KTM railway. In April 2011, the station was gazetted as a national monument. The last train departure from Tanjong Pagar station took place before a large crowd on 30 June 2011, marking an end to the station’s 79 years of service. Woodlands Train Station Checkpoint took over as terminus for KTM’s Singapore services from 1 July 2011 onward.

A MOMENT IN TIME

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Tanjong Pagar Railway Station was built on a reclaimed land from a firm Brossard and Mopin Ltd. It was constructed between 1929 and 1932 and was officially opened by Governor Sir Cecil Clementi on 2 May 1932. Located opposite the Tanjong Pagar docks to facilitate the easy transfer of cargo between steamships and railway trains.

During the 1918 agreement, British colonial government handed ownership of the railway land in Singapore to Federated Malay States Railway (FMSR) on 999 year lease which was then handed over to Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) Berhad after Malaysia’s independence. Hence, the railway land became part of Malaysian sovereign territory. Therefore, passengers who boarded the train had to clear the Malaysian customs even when boarding the train in Sngapore.

They resolved the issue of railway land ownership by both governments signed a bilateral accord in 1990 in which Malaysia had agreed to cancel the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station in return for three parcels of land in Singapore. However, political differences continue to unresolved.

It was only in 2010 when both countries resolved the problems by coming up with a new

implementation of the 1990 accord. KTM Berhad agreed to cancel the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station by 1 July 2011 and shift its operations to Woodlands Train Checkpoint. In exchange, Malaysia was given ownership of six other land parcels in Singapore to be jointly developed by both governments.

The building was gazette as national monument by Preservation of Monuments Board (PMB) on 8 april 2011. The closure of the station aroused major public interest towards the building.

PMB conducted guided tours which involve large number of visitors. Photographs were taken to preserve the memory of the station while others purchased KTM souvenirs or sought autographs from station staff. Train rides were also fully booked as many tried to get a seat on board the last few journeys out of the station.

On 30 June 2011 at 11pm sharp, the Sultan of Johor Ibrahim Iskandar piloted the last train’s departure from the station in a ceremony witnessed by a large crowd. Shortly after midnight, the station was officially closed, with its ownership reverted to the Singapore government.

A MOMENT IN TIME

The train back in the 1970s where it were still commonly used.

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A MOMENT IN TIME

Serbian architect D. S. Petrovich from Swan and Maclaren designed Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. It was influenced by art-deco, neo-classical and local styles of design. Also, Finland’s Helsinki Station designed by Eliel Saarinen inspired him.

An arched portico featuring green roof-

tiles influenced by Chinese temple architecture shelters the station entrance. There are four towering statues which were themed on Agriculture, Commerce, Transport and Industry which represent the sectors of Malaya’s colonial economy. The initials of the Federated Malay States Railway were placed above the sculpture.

source: google.com

the view of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station building from the outside.

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The main hall of the station has a high ceiling that facilitates ventilation, with elongated windows located along two opposite walls that allow enough sunflight to fill the whole place. Below these windows are the framed initials of the FMSR. The remaining walls of the station feature six murals designed by Doulton & Co in London that portrays economic activities that was historically prominent in Malaya such as tin mining and rubber tapping. The murals are tiles made of ceramic, which were actually created from coloured rubber by the Singapore Rubber Works using a patented process. Similar

rubber tiles were also used to pave the station floor initially but were replaced soon after.

The station platforms are 1200 feet long. It is designed to accommodate the longest mail trains at the time. The buffer stops that was manufactured by British Industrial firm, located near the end of the two railway platforms prevent train carriages from going beyond the end of the rail lines. These can only be found along the entire stretch of the KTM railway.

Shown is the 1200 feet long of the railway tracks.

The six murals which shows mining and rubber tapping.

Initial of the FMSR below the elongated window.

A MOMENT IN TIME

ARCHITECTURE

A MOMENT IN TIME

The food stalls that have been operating for a few decades is being cleared due to the closing down of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.

The officers last day on the railway station before it closes down, while waiting for the arrival of the last train.

TANJONG PAGAR RAILWAY STATION