Expo MRT station

EWL platforms of Expo station.

Exit A of Expo station leading to the two different lines.

Plans for this station were first announced by then Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on 15 November 1996 as part of an extension to Changi Airport MRT station.[3] As part of the President's Challenge 2001, a part of a charity walk goes through the tunnel between Expo and Changi Airport stations.[4][5][6]

Train services to Expo station were initially operated as a 2-station shuttle service from Tanah Merah when the station first opened and it was first denoted by code E13 for a short while until the MRT map was revamped in 2001 by former cabinet minister Yeo Cheow Tong (who was then Transport Minister).[7] It was then converted to a through service from Boon Lay station when the other station on the Changi Extension, Changi Airport, opened. However, to cut costs due to ridership falling below expectations, the service was reverted into shuttle mode on 22 July 2003.[8]

The initial numbering of this station was EW28, until 20 June that year when it was changed to CG1. The same numbering is now used for Pioneer station.

As with most of the above-ground stations built in the past along the East West line, it was built without platform screen doors that prevent commuters from falling onto the train tracks. Installation of the half-height screen doors started on 20 June 2011 as the last station of the East West line. On 31 August that year, all of the screen doors have been installed and began operating, marking the completion of the installation of all the Platform Screen Doors along the East West line.[9][10]

Downtown line platforms of Expo station.

On 20 August 2010, it was announced that the Stage 3 of the DTL will terminate and interchange with the EWL at Expo station.[11][12] The Contract 922 for the design and construction of Expo station and the overrun tunnels was awarded to Samsung C&T Corporation at a sum of S$211.35 million in May 2011.

On 28 November 2011, LTA marked the start of construction of Stage 3 of the DTL with a groundbreaking ceremony at this station.[13] On 31 May 2017, LTA announced that the station, together with the rest of DTL3, will be opened on 21 October that year.[14]

To facilitate the construction for the Downtown line 3 Expo station and its tunnels, part of Changi South Avenue 1 towards Somapah Road and Changi South Avenue 2, together with a short section of Expo Drive were temporarily closed to traffic from 2 October 2011 to May 2017.[15]

On 25 May 2019, the LTA announced an extension of the (TEL) to Changi Airport. Set to be completed by 2040, The TEL will be extended from its current terminus at Sungei Bedok MRT station to serve the future Changi Airport Terminal 5, and the stretch between Tanah Merah and Changi Airport, which is currently part of the East-West line, will be transferred over to the Thomson-East Coast line.[16]

Exterior view of Expo's (East West line) elevated platforms before the construction of the Downtown line

It sports a space-age architecture designed by Sir Norman Foster. The roof is clad in titanium, steel, and glass. Its design enabled the platform to be columns-free, invoking a sense of spaciousness. The station is built to handle fluctuating passenger volumes due to events at the adjacent Singapore Expo and has the large spaces needed to facilitate smooth traffic flow.

The Downtown line platforms feature a blue wall with the different names of some of the world's most famous metros and an installation on the History and Future of the MRT.