the 19th century until World War II. With the earliest records of Bukit Merah's existence in the Malay Annals, the town had a huge role to play in the early maritime trade of the Kingdom of Singapura. The town's fertile red soil was employed to great effect, when it was a district rich in gambier cultivation during British colonial rule. Even before the industrialisation of Jurong, Bukit Merah already had a small head start in the emerging heavy industry market in Singapore. With the first brickwork factories and mills emerging in the precincts of Henderson Hill and Redhill as early as the 1930s. The town is also home to the first housing estate in the country, Tiong Bahru, which was developed by the Singapore Improvement Trust in the backdrop of a rapidly growing population in post-war Singapore. The estate later became the basis of what would eventually become the first new town in the Republic, Queenstown. Geography According to the various master plans laid out by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, Bukit Merah is bounded by Alexandra Canal and the Singapore River to the north and HarbourFront and Keppel Bay to the south, Kim Seng Road, Outram Road and Cantonment Road to the east and Alexandra Road to the west. There are several subzones within the planning area, namely Alexandra, Bukit Ho Swee, Bukit Merah Central, Depot Road, Everton Park, HarbourFront, Henderson, Redhill, Singapore General Hospital, Telok Blangah and Tiong Bahru. Subzones Transportation Mass Rapid Transit The namesake Redhill MRT station was the first MRT station to open in area, in 1988. Today, there are currently 7 MRT stations that serve the planning area across 4 lines, the East West line, Circle line, North East line and the Thomson-East Coast line. HarbourFront MRT station is an interchange station between the North East line and the Circle line, which is also the current terminus for both lines. Outram Park MRT station was initially a double-line interchange station between the East West and North East lines but became a triple-line interchange station after the commencement of the third stage of the Thomson–East Coast line in 2022. The 7 stations are: Havelock Outram Park Tiong Bahru Redhill Labrador Park Telok Blangah HarbourFront Future stations that are currently under construction include: Keppel Cantonment The future stations, Keppel and Cantonment will be located within the new town as part of Stage 6 of the Circle line