Jurong gets transport hub, new roads

Move in line with plans for development of Jurong Lake District

CONNECTIVITY for commuters in Singapore's west will soon be ramped up with a brand new bus interchange at Boon Lay and an expanded road network in Jurong East.

The 20,000 sq m, fully air-conditioned interchange is set to see buses rolling out during the year-end school holidays.

Costing $24 million, it will be Singapore's biggest and most expensive bus interchange to date. It will also have the greatest number of bus services - 31 in total.

When it is open, Boon Lay will be the fourth town to have an integrated public transport hub, in which the bus interchange and MRT station are seamlessly linked with retail outlets.

The other integrated hubs are in Toa Payoh, Ang Mo Kio and Sengkang, while Clementi and Serangoon are expected to get air-conditioned bus interchanges in 2011.

Commuters using the new Boon Lay bus interchange can get to it through multiple entrances.

An escalator from the third floor of Jurong Point 2, near the NTUC FairPrice supermarket, will also take shoppers directly to the bus interchange.

Over in Jurong East, motorists can look forward to smoother traffic flow as the Land Transport Authority (LTA) adds two new roads to the estate.

An LTA spokesman said traffic demand is expected to go up in the town as plans for the Jurong Lake District take shape.

A new dual three-lane road will extend from Jurong East Street 13 to Toh Guan Road. Another new dual two-lane road will be built to link Jurong East Street 13 and Jurong East Street 11.

Existing roads will also be expanded. The heavily used Jurong Town Hall Road will have an extra lane added in both directions at the stretch from the Pan-Island Expressway to Boon Lay Way, and the stretch from Jurong East Central to the Ayer Rajah Expressway.

Part of Jurong East Street 13 will also have an additional lane each way.

All the works are ongoing and will be completed by 2011 at a cost of $48.3 million.

Jurong East resident Cheong Kah Meng, 59, said the plans will ease congestion in his estate. 'Jurong Town Hall Road is especially bad during the peak hour, so hopefully the extra lane will help,' said the welfare-home manager.

Source: Straits Times, 14 Aug 2009