by Bernadette Low

Going

beneath
the surface
From ammunition dumps to
shopping malls, URA continues to
explore innovative ways of optimising the land below.

Hidden cables
The Common Services Tunnel
(CST) is a network of tunnels built
beneath the road surface that will
house essential services, such as
water pipes, power cables, and
utility service lines like telecommunication cables. To be built in
the New Downtown, the first stage
of construction began in May this
year at Marina South. Phase 1 will
be completed by the end of 2004.
The beauty of such a tunnel system
is that regular servicing of essential
services will be made possible with
minimal disruptions. This means
fewer excavation works that would
cause traffic jams, or disruption to
services due to accidental hacking of
pipes or cables.

The tunnels will have the capacity

to host other services in the future,
such as chilled water pipes for airconditioning and pneumatic refuse
conveyancing services. More importantly, about 1.6 hectares of land,
approximately equal to the size of
two soccer fields, will be saved
throughout the New Downtown.

reclamation plants, instead of six,

will be required. This will free 990
hectares of land, equivalent to two
Yishun Towns, for other
developments.

Next-generation
sewerage system

Storage facilities

Construction work started in July last

year at Kranji for Phase 1 of the Deep
Tunnel Sewerage System (DTSS),
Singapore's next-generation used
water management system. The 80
km of tunnels will make use of gravitational force to carry sewage deep
into the ground. The treated effluent
will be disposed 5km off the Straits of
Singapore.
With the new system, the existing
139 pumping stations will be
redundant. Only two new water

The Deep Tunnel Sewerage System is Singapores nextgeneration used water management system.

Skyline Nov/Dec 2001 4

Much has been said about

Singapores land constraints
and our need to optimise
land use. Skyline gives you a
lowdown on how the land
has been utilised so far.

The second phase of construction

will begin in 2008. The entire system
will be ready by 2015.

Singapore enjoys rainfall all year

round. To store some of the rainwater, eight existing underground
stormwater ponds collect run-off
water from heavy rain to add to our
domestic water supply. These ponds,
located in areas like Tampines, Bedok
and Yishun, can collect about six
million gallons of water a day. Six
new collection ponds to be built in
Sengkang, Hougang and Punggol
will boost our domestic water supply
by another 5 million gallons a day.

Common Services Tunnels will house electricty cables,

telecommunication lines and water pipes.

With CityLink Mall, pedestrians can walk from City Hall MRT
to Suntec City in sheltered convenience.

Another example of the creative

use of underground storage is the
Ministry of Defence Underground
Ammunition Facility (UAF) that is
now being developed in Mandai
Quarry. Scheduled for opening in
2004, this ammunition dump will
free up 300 hectares of land,
equivalent to half the size of Pasir
Ris New Town.
This is just one of the proposals that
URA has explored with other government agencies on the use of underground storage. Another active
participant is the Jurong Town Corporation (JTC), which unveiled plans
to explore underground storage of
oil in September 2001. Other examples of underground oil storage
can be found in Norway and Korea.
JTCs other plans in this area include
subterranean warehouses and gas
storage.

Underground movements
Commuters can look forward to
more subterranean traveling with
the new 4.9 km Northeast MRT line,
slated for completion in 2002. The
line runs entirely underground and
will link the north-eastern part of
Singapore to the city centre.
Another new MRT line, the Circle
Line, will also run entirely underground. When it is completed by

More underground passes in Orchard Road will make walking

more seamless and enjoyable.

the end of the decade, this new

orbital line will be connected to the
existing North-South and East-West
MRT lines, as well as the Northeast
line at Dhoby Ghaut.
In line with plans to transform
Orchard Road into a more wellconnected and vibrant shopping
belt, more underground links from
the MRT stations to the surrounding
developments will be built. Together
with an increased number of sheltered
as well as first-and upper-storey links,
these underground passes will make
traveling more seamless and
enjoyable.

Its cool below

You can also find glamour and
excitement underground!
In cities such as Toronto and
Montreal, extensive underground
links to various buildings mean that
pedestrians can move from one
building to another without having
to brave cold weather. These underground pedestrian linkways do not
merely serve as shelters, but also
offer shopping, services and other
facilities.
In Singapore, the 350m-long
CityLink Mall is a showcase of things
to come. Pedestrians can now walk
from the City Hall MRT station to

Suntec City and other destinations

in the Marina Centre area in cool
convenience, rain or shine. Along
the way, they can also pick up some
books, buy a dress and have a cuppa!
By next year, when EsplanadeTheatres on the Bay is completed,
pedestrians will be able to stroll
directly from the MRT trains into a
world of entertainment and the arts.
The concept of underground
pedestrian linkways will be extended
to other areas, such as Orchard Road
and the New Downtown. In March
2001, URA awarded the tender for a
white site in the New Downtown
area.The new development will
include an under-ground pedestrian
mall linking the Raffles Place area to
Marina Boulevard. Perhaps in the
future, you can leave your umbrella
and sunglasses at home when you
go out!

Future underground
moves
URA recently reconvened an interagency committee to actively explore
new opportunities for underground
space usage. Made up of various
government agencies and institutions, the committee will study the
overall approach to a more effective
use of underground space.

Skyline Nov/Dec 2001 5