SEPARATE PEDESTRIAN WALKWAYS AND BICYCLE LANES IN HOUSING ESTATES

Mr Charles Chong asked the Minister for National Development if his Ministry will consider the construction of separate pedestrian walkways and bicycle lanes in our housing estates.

Mr Lim Hng Kiang: In new towns like Sengkang and Punggol, a comprehensive system of green connectors is provided to link the residential precincts to the commercial and recreational facilities. This is to give residents a generally vehicular-free access to facilities in the towns.

Also, in the new estates, with the introduction of multi-storey carparks which are served directly by service roads normally situated along the perimeter of the housing precincts, the vehicular traffic along service roads within the housing precincts is reduced. As cyclists can make use of these service roads safely, HDB does not specifically provide bicycle tracks within housing estates.

For the older housing estates, the layout of the service roads is spread throughout the entire precinct as there is a need to serve the surface carparks found in between blocks. Segregation of pedestrian traffic is not distinct and may not be ideal for cycling. The construction of separate walkways and bicycle lanes can be considered only where appropriate.