Eco-bridge will be built to reduce impact on nature and graves
By Christopher Tan, The Straits Times, 20 Mar 2012
IN WHAT some observers see as a concession to various interest groups, the Government yesterday announced that one-third of a controversial new road across Bukit Brown will be a bridge up to 10m off the ground.
This is expected to cost up to three times more than a surface road, but the option will benefit fauna in the wooded area, the site of an old cemetery.
The bridge will also mean slightly fewer graves will be affected by the road works, although the Land Transport Authority (LTA) cannot pinpoint the exact number of graves saved because of this.
All in, 3,746 graves will have to be exhumed from early next year. The LTA had initially estimated 5,000 would have to go when the road project was announced last year.
Giving its finalised plans for the dual four-lane carriageway that will bypass Lornie Road, the LTA said that it decided on something 'that minimises... impact to the existing terrain and surrounding environment'.
Giving its finalised plans for the dual four-lane carriageway that will bypass Lornie Road, the LTA said that it decided on something 'that minimises... impact to the existing terrain and surrounding environment'.
A 600m centre portion of the 2km road will be a bridge. The LTA explained that this was because of the undulating landscape consisting of 'several hillocks... and creeks'.
It said a bridge will maintain an 'eco-linkage' under the structure, and wildlife in the area can 'continue to traverse between both sides of the road'. Existing streams will also be preserved.
Experts said, however, that the most economical and efficient method to build a road in such an environment would be to use what is known as 'cut and fill', which is basically excavating soil from hilly terrain in the area to fill up lower ground so that the entire area is flat.
Mr Rajan Krishnan, senior vice-president (Asia) of infrastructural group Parsons Brinckerhoff, said building a bridge would cost 'at least 21/2 times' more than building a surface road as it would involve piling and added structures such as piers.
Mr Joshua Ong, vice-president of engineering consultancy Jurong Consultants, said: 'A cut-and-fill method would be the cheapest and most optimal solution. An elevated road will cost two to three times more.'
Nature Society (Singapore) president Shawn Lum told The Straits Times earlier yesterday that he was 'heartened' by the news. 'No road would have been best, but if there was going to be a road, an elevated road is the better option,' he said. The option will allow free movement of small reptiles and frogs. 'Even birds will benefit, because some don't like to fly over road,' he said.
Nature Society (Singapore) president Shawn Lum told The Straits Times earlier yesterday that he was 'heartened' by the news. 'No road would have been best, but if there was going to be a road, an elevated road is the better option,' he said. The option will allow free movement of small reptiles and frogs. 'Even birds will benefit, because some don't like to fly over road,' he said.
Mr Cedric Foo, chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport, said the decision to build an elevated road, although costlier, 'is the right direction'.
'In the early days of our development, we focused on economic development, and conservation was a luxury we could not afford. But when a country is richer, we can accommodate some of these things,' he said. 'We can't put a dollar value to natural habitat.'
The new road will alleviate current congestion along Lornie Road during peak hours and cater to expected traffic growth. It is expected to be ready by 2016. In the longer term, the area has been earmarked for housing.
After details were announced last September, various civic society groups called for the entire area - the site of some 100,000 old graves - to be spared, citing heritage and environment reasons.
Last night, after meeting Minister of State for National Development Tan Chuan-Jin, seven groups including the Nature Society (Singapore) called for a moratorium on all works at Bukit Brown until discussions over alternatives to building a road have been exhausted. Nature Society's conservation committee vice-chairman Ho Hua Chew attended the meeting in place of Mr Lum.
The LTA yesterday said the new road is needed sooner, not later, citing a rise in traffic demand by up to 30 per cent by 2020. It added that internationally, few private graves are preserved by the state. But it acknowledged the heritage value of the place, and had together with the Urban Redevelopment Authority commissioned documentation of affected graves.
Bukit Brown meeting 'not a consultation'
It was not in response to interest groups' request: Tan Chuan-Jin
By Goh Chin Lian & Royston Sim, The Straits Times, 21 Mar 2012
It was not in response to interest groups' request: Tan Chuan-Jin
By Goh Chin Lian & Royston Sim, The Straits Times, 21 Mar 2012
WHEN government officials met nature and heritage groups over plans for a new road in Bukit Brown on Monday, they never meant it to be a consultation on whether the road would be built or not.
The session was also not called in response to those groups' earlier request to meet government agencies, said Minister of State (National Development and Manpower) Tan Chuan-Jin, who had chaired the meeting.
He was responding to criticisms by seven groups, including the Nature Society (Singapore) and the Singapore Heritage Society (SHS), that they were not given time to make their own presentations of alternatives at the meeting.
The groups also said government agencies had postponed a Feb 20 meeting the groups had requested with 31 of their representatives, only to have the Ministry of National Development (MND) invite only a few of the original 31 representatives, and others, to the Monday night meeting.
Together with the decision to limit the representation of groups to one person from each group, these moves 'give a strong impression of the lack of good faith on the part of MND', they said in a statement released at 10.25pm on Monday.
Barely six hours later, in a Facebook posting at about 4.30am yesterday, Mr Tan said: 'It is illuminating to read the statement issued by the various groups.'
He said the meeting 'was never intended to be the type of dialogue desired and claimed by these groups. Nor was it a response to their earlier request'.
'I had explained that our intent was simply to share with a range of stakeholders some of the background information and considerations we had previously shared with other groups and to also highlight the road plans which were being announced,' he said.
'It was not a consultation effort to debate whether the road would be built or not. That has already been stated in Parliament,' he said, referring to the debate on MND's budget on March 5.
He added that the meeting was to announce the details and alignment of the road. 'However, it was clear that it did not matter. Because we failed to conduct a session that was in line with what they wanted, for example, to have their own briefs, to invite others on their invite list, it was deemed to be an inadequate effort at genuine engagement.'
Participants of the meeting described the atmosphere as largely cordial and civil.
Last night, MND said Mr Tan initiated Monday's session as part of ongoing engagements with stakeholders to share the considerations in the road design.
'It was a separate meeting from the one where some of the interest groups had asked to meet the Land Transport Authority,' the MND said, referring to the Feb 20 meeting.
It added that Mr Tan had clarified this point with the participants during Monday's session.
Mr Tan's posting attracted 67 comments as of press time last night. Some said officials had done enough to engage interest groups. Others said that since the Government was already set on building the road before it consulted other parties, there was no genuine engagement.
Interviewed last night, the groups stuck to their criticisms of the Monday meeting. An SHS spokesman said it was disappointed that the authorities did not present sufficient data to show that every possible solution had been considered.
SOS Bukit Brown co-founder Erika Lim said Monday's meeting was the first time the groups' representatives were meeting the Government collectively.
She said: 'This was our first real chance to sit down as a group to talk about Bukit Brown. If we don't, what other chance is there?'
Nominated MP and Singapore Management University law professor Eugene Tan said both sides would learn valuable lessons on engaging each other through this episode.
Nature Society president Shawn Lum - who was not at the meeting - felt the episode boiled down to a difference in expectations.
While the Government has tried to retain much of the heritage in the affected area, the gap in expectations between the groups and the authorities could have widened somewhere along the line, he noted.
'How do you bridge those sets of expectations? Finding that bridge will be the way going forward.'
Naysayers want all works halted
They insist on not having a road across the cemetery
They insist on not having a road across the cemetery
By Goh Chin Lian & Royston Sim, The Straits Times, 20 Mar 2012
AFTER more than two hours of listening to officials last night, representatives of several environment and heritage groups emerged from the closed-door meeting unconvinced that a road had to be built across part of Bukit Brown Cemetery.
They released a statement at 10.25pm calling for a moratorium on all works at Bukit Brown.
They also criticised the way the meeting, chaired by Minister of State for National Development and Manpower Tan Chuan-Jin, was handled.
The statement was signed by seven groups: Nature Society (Singapore), Singapore Heritage Society, Asia Paranormal Investigators, All Things Bukit Brown, SOS Bukit Brown, Green Corridor and non-profit environmental group Green Drinks.
They argued that plans to develop housing and transport infrastructure in the Bukit Brown area cannot be made while national discussions were under way over housing, transportation and immigration, and before the public has had a chance to fully consider the details of the proposals.
This includes releasing detailed findings of studies of biodiversity and hydrology, as well as projections on housing and transport.
They said: 'This moratorium should be in place until there is clarity over long-term plans for the area and discussions over alternatives have been exhausted.'
In their eight-point statement, they also alleged that government agencies had postponed a Feb 20 meeting that the groups had requested with 31 of their representatives, only to have the Ministry of National Development (MND) invite only a few of the original 31 representatives, and others, to last night's meeting. It was held at the Urban Redevelopment Authority headquarters in Maxwell Road.
Together with the decision to limit the representation of groups to one person from each group, they said, these moves 'give a strong impression of the lack of good faith on the part of MND'.
They also objected to the meeting being held after the Land Transport Authority (LTA) had already announced its road plans to the media earlier yesterday morning, and alleged that they were told no time would be given at the meeting for them to make their own presentations of alternatives. 'We regret that this meeting has largely turned out to be a unilateral dissemination of information by particular agencies,' they said.
The LTA had embargoed the release of the road plans until 9pm.
Mr Tan acknowledged last night that the decision to go ahead with building the road disappointed those who wanted to conserve Bukit Brown. In a Facebook post at about 9.30pm after the meeting with the groups ended, he said the decision was not an easy one. 'While we have not been able to fully accommodate their wishes, we have taken many of their views into consideration,' he said.
This included a serious documentation of the affected graves, following advice from the Singapore Heritage Society. The road design also factored in feedback to minimise impact to the cemetery, hydrology and biodiversity, he said.
'Going forward, we need to continue with these conversations,' he said. 'We are now looking at working with interested stakeholders on public outreach to commemorate the history and heritage of Bukit Brown even as we continue with work on documentation.'
Preliminary documentation of affected graves was completed earlier this month, and a team of researchers and field workers will continue to document the family histories, stories and memories associated with the cemetery, as well as the rituals carried out during the Qing Ming festival and exhumation of graves, the LTA said.
Public exhumation of affected graves will begin from early next year to give the next of kin more time to register their claims, it added.
Members of Parliament like Ms Lee Bee Wah, Mr Seah Kian Peng and Mr Lim Biow Chuan, as well as political observers interviewed, felt that the latest plans reflect an effort to strike a balance among competing interests, and were the result of active consultation and engagement with various interest groups.
'Singapore is so small and needs land for redevelopment. We need to strike a balance,' said Ms Lee, chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for National Development and the Environment.
Asked if the authorities had accomplished this in its latest decision, she said: 'It shows there is give and take. There are bound to be people who have differing views, but sometimes it's difficult to make everyone happy.'
Dr Hui Yew Foong, an anthropologist from the Institute of South-east Asian Studies, who heads the documentation efforts, declined to comment on the elevated road project when contacted, saying it made 'no difference' to his work.
Bridge will help, say some experts
It will minimise disruption of ecosystem but more thought must be put into its design
By Feng Zengkun, The Straits Times, 23 Mar 2012
It will minimise disruption of ecosystem but more thought must be put into its design
By Feng Zengkun, The Straits Times, 23 Mar 2012
SOME environment experts here believe a bridge that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) will be building as part of a road through the 200ha Bukit Brown Cemetery will help minimise disruption to the flora and fauna.
Preserving the environment would be better but since the LTA is going ahead with the road plan, more thought needs to be put into the design of this bridge.
Earlier this week, the LTA announced that a third of the planned road across the cemetery would be a bridge, to allow animals to pass under the road and preserve streams in the area. A 670m stretch of the road will climb up to 10m above ground.
Among the animals believed to be found in Bukit Brown are the sunda pangolin and monitor lizard.
The change comes after months of protests by civic groups, which have called for the whole area to be preserved for its heritage and biodiversity.
They argued that a road would disrupt animal migration patterns and vegetation in the area. After the Bukit Timah Expressway was built in 1986, slicing a vast wilderness tract in half, animals died trying to cross the road to search for food and mates. As animals have a role in pollinating plants and dispersing seeds, plant variety in the forest was also reduced.
The groups have called for a moratorium on all plans until discussions on possible alternatives have been exhausted.
Professor Peter Ng, 52, who co-edited the first encyclopaedia on Singapore's biodiversity, published last year, said that while traffic noise from the bridge may scare some animals away, others would adapt to the new situation.
Assistant Professor David Bickford, 43, from the Department of Biological Sciences at the National University of Singapore, added that in any case, many animals travel at dawn and dusk and in the night, when there is less traffic on the bridge.
But more information on the exact species in the area needs to be gathered first, they said, in order to understand the impact of the bridge on them.
The LTA had conducted a study on the road's environmental impact but declined to share the details of its report.
The Nature Society (Singapore) estimates that at least 91 bird species live in or frequent the area, including 14 species that are threatened.
'We need more data on the vegetation and other fauna such as mammals, reptiles and amphibians in the area,' said Dr Ho Hua Chew, the Nature Society's conservation committee vice-chairman.
But the bridge could cause other environmental problems in the area, said Dr Ho. The eight-lane bridge will cast a wide shadow, killing plants underneath, he said. 'The stretch will be bare and ugly over time, wiping out most of the species that are adapted to grassy or shrubby habitats,' he added.
Prof Bickford said if the linkway becomes barren, animals may not use it.
This could have further impact on the vegetation in the area. 'Some plants require animals to carry their seed,' said Dr Edward Webb at the NUS Department of Biological Sciences who specialises in plant ecology.
The experts suggested several measures to make sure the bridge serves its green purpose.
Thick vegetation on both sides of the bridge would insulate animals from the traffic noise and make the passageway more attractive to them, said Prof Ng, who is also with the NUS Department of Biological Sciences.
Prof Bickford suggested breaking up the expressway into two four-lane roads and making sure there is a sizeable gap between them.
'Let the gap be big enough to have substantial sunlight passing through. The light will hit different parts of the ground during the day and reduce the area that is in shadow all the time,' he said.
This would give vegetation a fighting chance and therefore make the linkway more attractive to animals, he explained.
The LTA said the road would have a gap but the exact blueprint has not been determined.
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* Work on Bukit Brown road set to begin in 2014
Construction to start once affected graves are exhumed
By Jermyn Chow, The Straits Times, 6 Aug 2013
Construction to start once affected graves are exhumed
By Jermyn Chow, The Straits Times, 6 Aug 2013
WORK on the controversial new road that cuts through Bukit Brown cemetery will start as early as the beginning of next year after the affected graves are exhumed.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said yesterday that it had awarded a tender to local contractor Swee Hong to build the dual four-lane road at a cost of $134.7 million.
The estimated 2km stretch, which will link the MacRitchie Viaduct to the Adam Flyover, is meant to ease peak-hour congestion on Lornie Road and the Pan-Island Expressway.
The road is expected to be completed by the end of 2017, a year after its initial 2016 projection.
The LTA also said that 4,153 of the 100,000 graves at Bukit Brown will be exhumed from the fourth quarter of this year, a deadline which was pushed back from April.
It has already received 1,263 claims for graves, while the rest that would be affected by the new road or are in its vicinity, have been documented by a committee led by anthropologist Hui Yew-Foong.
He will next lead a 10-man team to follow families that are exhuming their ancestral graves.
When contacted yesterday, Dr Hui, who is with the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies and the appointed documentarian of Bukit Brown cemetery, said: "We want to record the rituals or ceremonies that are conducted before the exhumation so that we can preserve the memories, heritage and traditions."
He and his team are also looking to record all artefacts that may be unearthed, like jewellery, bangles or miniature pots.
Construction of the road was first announced in 2011, sparking an intense debate between heritage and nature groups and the Government.
Instead of laying a road flat on the ground through the cemetery, the LTA has already agreed to build a 600m-long bridge to allow wildlife to cross beneath the carriageway.
Dr Chua Ai Lin, vice-president of the Singapore Heritage Society, believes the Government has "done all it can" to reduce the impact of the new road on wildlife and heritage sites.
She also commended the authorities for giving families and researchers more time to document the graves.
She added: "But there were alternatives that were not relooked and that was a missed opportunity for us to prevent irreversible impact on the environment and heritage."
** First phase of Lornie Highway, also known as Bukit Brown Road, to open on 28 October 2018
Southbound section, which runs parallel to Lornie Road, to open after repeated delays
By Christopher Tan, Senior Transport Correspondent, The Straits Times, 12 Oct 2018
After repeated delays, the first phase of the Lornie Highway - previously known as the Bukit Brown road - will open on Oct 28.
The southbound section of the road, which runs parallel to Lornie Road, will facilitate traffic flow from Thomson towards the Pan-Island Expressway as well as Adam and Farrer roads.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said yesterday that an underpass near the entrance of the highway will allow motorists to access the residential area in Lornie Road, while a temporary road connection near Sime Road has been built to connect traffic from the existing southbound Lornie Road to southbound Lornie Highway.
"With the opening of southbound Lornie Highway, motorists heading towards the PIE, Adam Road and Farrer Road are advised to use the new Lornie Highway to reach their destinations," the LTA said. "The existing southbound four-lane Lornie Road will progressively be downgraded to two lanes from Oct 28."
Traffic on the MacRitchie Viaduct will flow directly onto the new road. Southbound motorists using the current Lornie Road will have to access it via surface roads.
The northbound Lornie Highway will be completed in phases. When the stretch fully opens by the first quarter of next year, a new underpass at the Sime Road junction will remove the need for a signalised junction there today.
Motorist Aaron Hia, 33, said that he is "really looking forward" to the new road.
The product trainer at a motor firm said he uses Lornie Road to get to work, and sees bottlenecks on the MacRitchie Viaduct (southbound) and Sime Road junction regularly. "In the morning, it is actually faster to avoid the viaduct, and use the surface road to get onto Lornie," he said.
She added: "But there were alternatives that were not relooked and that was a missed opportunity for us to prevent irreversible impact on the environment and heritage."
** First phase of Lornie Highway, also known as Bukit Brown Road, to open on 28 October 2018
Southbound section, which runs parallel to Lornie Road, to open after repeated delays
By Christopher Tan, Senior Transport Correspondent, The Straits Times, 12 Oct 2018
The southbound section of the road, which runs parallel to Lornie Road, will facilitate traffic flow from Thomson towards the Pan-Island Expressway as well as Adam and Farrer roads.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said yesterday that an underpass near the entrance of the highway will allow motorists to access the residential area in Lornie Road, while a temporary road connection near Sime Road has been built to connect traffic from the existing southbound Lornie Road to southbound Lornie Highway.
"With the opening of southbound Lornie Highway, motorists heading towards the PIE, Adam Road and Farrer Road are advised to use the new Lornie Highway to reach their destinations," the LTA said. "The existing southbound four-lane Lornie Road will progressively be downgraded to two lanes from Oct 28."
Traffic on the MacRitchie Viaduct will flow directly onto the new road. Southbound motorists using the current Lornie Road will have to access it via surface roads.
The northbound Lornie Highway will be completed in phases. When the stretch fully opens by the first quarter of next year, a new underpass at the Sime Road junction will remove the need for a signalised junction there today.
Motorist Aaron Hia, 33, said that he is "really looking forward" to the new road.
The product trainer at a motor firm said he uses Lornie Road to get to work, and sees bottlenecks on the MacRitchie Viaduct (southbound) and Sime Road junction regularly. "In the morning, it is actually faster to avoid the viaduct, and use the surface road to get onto Lornie," he said.
Medical doctor Kong Yongyao, 30, said: "I have no doubt it will relieve congestion."
Meanwhile, the LTA said bus services 52, 74, 93, 852 and 855, which currently ply Lornie Road towards Adam Road, will be adjusted to ply the new southbound Lornie Highway. Bus services 157 and 165 will continue to ply Lornie Road.
Existing bus stops along southbound Lornie Road opposite the Singapore Island Country Club will also be relocated to the southbound Lornie Highway before Kheam Hock Road.
Lornie Highway is meant to cater to growth in future traffic demand arising from redevelopment of the Bukit Brown area.
The road project had been delayed repeatedly. It was announced in 2011, and at first slated to be completed by mid-2016, and then by the end of last year, then in two phases from the third quarter of this year.
When the project was announced, it stirred up strong protests from nature and heritage groups because it cut across a vast forested area and the Bukit Brown cemetery, where many of Singapore's pioneers were buried. More than 3,000 graves were exhumed in the area.
Freelance writer Lynn Tan, 41, said that the exhumation did not affect her great-grandfather's grave. "We were happy... but I would say it's not really a big deal. We would have moved the grave if it was necessary."
Existing bus stops along southbound Lornie Road opposite the Singapore Island Country Club will also be relocated to the southbound Lornie Highway before Kheam Hock Road.
Lornie Highway is meant to cater to growth in future traffic demand arising from redevelopment of the Bukit Brown area.
The road project had been delayed repeatedly. It was announced in 2011, and at first slated to be completed by mid-2016, and then by the end of last year, then in two phases from the third quarter of this year.
When the project was announced, it stirred up strong protests from nature and heritage groups because it cut across a vast forested area and the Bukit Brown cemetery, where many of Singapore's pioneers were buried. More than 3,000 graves were exhumed in the area.
Freelance writer Lynn Tan, 41, said that the exhumation did not affect her great-grandfather's grave. "We were happy... but I would say it's not really a big deal. We would have moved the grave if it was necessary."
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