Transport accessibility and infrastructure in Singapore – pedestrian facilities

Abstract

Since the mid-1990s all land transport master plans for Singapore have focused on public bus and rail transport. However, as the final leg of any public transport journey is generally on foot, the provision of walking and road-crossing facilities has been accelerated to meet the diverse needs of pedestrians – ranging from small children to senior citizens and the disabled. This paper describes the physical measures that have been used to make pedestrian facilities in Singapore barrier-free, safe and secure. These include lighting of all facilities at night, sheltered footpaths, kerb-cut ramps when footpaths meet carriageways, raised zebra crossings, extensions of crossing times for senior citizens using concession fare-cards, special alarms at pedestrian signals for the visually handicapped, and ramps, escalators and lifts in addition to staircases for access to pedestrian bridges and underpasses. Whereas it is possible to make new pedestrian facilities barrier-free, retrofitting older facilities poses problems. It is hoped that the 2013 Land Transport Master Plan will spur a more concerted and accelerated effort towards achieving a truly accessible transport system for all by the year 2020.