Cycle from Bishan to CBD in 30 min
If completed, new seamless cycling route may halve riding time from Bishan to town
Riding a bicycle from the Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park to Gardens by the Bay and then the Central Business District (CBD) - without dismounting - could be a reality in future.
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) wants to make the 10km-long Kallang Park Connector, which starts in Bishan and runs along the Kallang River, a seamless cycling route.
Yesterday, it called for consultants to suggest ways around seven obstacles, which include an underpass with low head-room and overhead pedestrian bridges, that now prevent a seamless ride.
If the route is completed, a cyclist would be able to ride from Bishan to the heart of the city in 30 to 45 minutes, compared to 60 to 90 minutes now.
CHALLENGES: The seven crossings in the way of a seamless cycling route from Bishan to the Central Business District. ILLUSTRATION COURTESY OF URA
The URA said it would shortlist the consultants by October and select a team to conduct the study by the second quarter of next year. The study will take a year to complete.
URA executive planner Joycelyn Yik said this could be the birth of Singapore's first seamless cycling route into the heart of the city, which would pass through 11 housing estates and serve 400,000 people.
But there are constraints.
"Given that the Kallang Park Connector and Kallang River run through very built up areas, there's really not much land for us to play with around here," said Ms Yik.
She added that elevated cycling-friendly bridges with gentle ramps, or underpasses, could be possible solutions.
OTHER PARKS
The URA and the National Parks Board said they would first study the route before turning their attention to other park connectors.
NParks assistant director of park planning Henry Hee said the biggest obstacle on the Kallang connector is the overhead bridge over the PIE, near Saint Andrew's Junior School.
Cyclists have to carry their bikes up and down eight flights of stairs to get to the other side.
Associate Professor Wong Yiik Diew, director of the Centre for Infrastructure Systems at Nanyang Technological University, said the initiative would set up an important "trunk route" for commuting cyclists. - The Straits Times
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