Debated in Parliament on 13 Feb 2015.
Mr David Ong asked the Minister for Transport (a) what are the guidelines for erecting covered pedestrian overhead bridges; and (b) whether the Ministry will review these guidelines for existing pedestrian overhead bridges that span across major expressways connecting residential estates to make it more convenient for residents.
The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Transport (Assoc Prof Dr Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim) (for the Minister for Transport): Mdm Speaker, 84% of pedestrian overhead bridges are covered. Over time, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) plans to provide cover for the rest, including those that span across expressways. Those that have higher pedestrian usage and are connected to a transport node or facility will be accorded higher priority.
Madam, a couple of supplementary questions. Working towards an enhanced pedestrian walking experience, would the Ministry consider incorporating standard shelters across all its overhead bridges connecting housing precincts other than meeting the criteria of connecting transport nodes, schools or even public institutions? Because I have two such bridges across the PIE in Bukit Batok for which many residents have made appeals. So, I hope that the Ministry can consider that.
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The second question: since we are on the issue of overhead bridges, can the Ministry also update us on the status of LTA's efforts in making our overhead bridges more accessible to our elderly, wheel-chair bound commuters, cyclists and parents with prams?
Madam, I would like to thank the Member for the questions. Essentially, as I have mentioned earlier, we would cover all the overhead bridges and we would give priority to those which have higher pedestrian flow as well as those which are connected to the Walk2Ride programme or are within 400 metres of a rail station. With regard to the standard, I would like to clarify what is meant by "standard".
Secondly, it is about the facilities for the elderly. In fact, we have started a long while ago to provide such facilities and we are continuing our efforts to do so, as part of these plans for an ageing society. It is not only done by LTA or the Ministry of Transport; it is an inter-Ministry effort. And I would like to assure the Member that it is something that is a high priority on our agenda as part of the process of providing for an inclusive society.
Madam, allow me to clarify. The "standard" which I referred to is to provide shorter pedestrian overhead bridges (POBs), that is, for any POB that connects a housing estate to another housing estate. I have two POBs in Bukit Batok that are not covered yet. I also know that one of the criteria is to have high pedestrian traffic. But for some bridges, they do not have high traffic but they do give tremendous convenience to our residents who want to connect from one estate to another estate.
Again, I would like to reiterate that we will cover all POBs over time. With regard to his covered linkways, maybe if he could share the specific details with me, I am sure our staff at LTA will work closely with him with regard to the POBs in question. So, I look forward to receiving details from him.
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