Given that the Singapore Tanjong Pagar railway station will cease its KTM (Malaysian Railway) operation from July 1, 2010 onwards, we found one day to ride the train from Singapore to Johor Bahru.

The ticket from Singapore to JB is somewhat expensive at a "flat" S$13, considering you can go to JB by Bus Service 170 (from Kranji MRT) with just a few bucks. (If you considering riding the KTM into Malaysia, consider going into JB first, then riding the train from there. Tickets are much cheaper in Malaysia, and you will be charged in Ringgit instead. JB Sentral station contains both bus station (where Bus 170 from Singapore terminates) and the KTM train.)

We arrived early to get the tickets at the counter, spent some time taking photos of the station, then made our way through the gates to the Malaysian immigration counter (yes, the train station and the tracks are considered Malaysian territory, so we are technically entering Malaysia!)

By today's standards, the train itself is somewhat old and run-down, although the crew kept the coach clean. The best part is that it is well air-conditioned. There were hardly any passengers - mostly backpackers that were probably riding all the way to Thailand.

The train ride was somewhat uneventful, passing through the Bukit Timah area in Singapore, before stopping at the immigration checkpoint at Woodlands (on the Singapore side of the causeway) where we alighted for passport control and re-boarded the same train.

The Johor Bahru stop (on Malaysian side) is right after the Causeway, at JB Sentral, a huge transportation hub (bus, train, taxi service, etc) that has a pedestrian overpass link to an air-conditioned 5-storey shopping mall (City Square shopping mall). We ate at the mall's food court (warning: prices on par with Singaporean prices), shopped a little at a bookstore ("Popular" bookstore has english and chinese books, and lots of assessment books for students), before taking the Singapore bus 170 (also departing from JB Sentral) back to Kranji MRT station on the Singapore side.

While the trip was uneventful and somewhat expensive given the journey is an hour to go maybe 20km, it was still a memorable experience, just to be part of what would be a historical track.

If you have time, I would suggest taking the train all the way into Kuala Lumpur, or even further. Google "KTM" for many great resources and websites.

I have included my photos of the KTM schedule below, including the KTM prices, that have been posted in the Tanjong Pagar station. Hopefully they will be more helpful than the KTM website.