Two more contracts for covered linkways awarded

Two more contracts for covered linkways awarded

SINGAPORE - Come rain or shine, commuters will have more than 200km of new sheltered walkways connecting them to MRT and LRT train stations by 2018.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said yesterday that it has awarded the final batch of two contracts to build more covered linkways to connect schools, health-care facilities, residences and public amenities with nearby transport nodes.

The walkways will be built within a 400m radius of MRT stations and a 200m radius of LRT stations and bus interchanges.

The latest two contracts were awarded to Or Kim Peow Contractors for a total of $143.8 million.

The first contract will cover 38 LRT stations in Bukit Panjang, Sengkang and Punggol, and is worth $60.9 million.

The second - worth $82.9 million - will cover 29 MRT stations in the central and southern parts of Singapore, including Tanjong Pagar, Marina Bay, Clarke Quay, Telok Blangah, Labrador Park, Pasir Panjang and Holland Village stations.

Sheltered walkways will also be built around Bukit Merah bus interchange as part of this contract.

Works for both projects are expected to start in the fourth quarter of this year and will be completed progressively by 2018.

They are part of a $300.4 million sum which has so far been spent on improving sheltered connections to transport nodes, under the LTA's Walk2Ride initiative announced in January 2013.

The additional sheltered walkways to be built under Walk2Ride are more than four times the current 46km that connect transport nodes.

Currently, sheltered walkways are provided only from transport nodes to schools and health-care facilities within a 200m radius. They are also provided within residential estates by town councils.

In May last year, the first two contracts worth $156.6 million were awarded.

One was awarded to a joint venture between Singapore Piling & Civil Engineering and Shincon Industrial for $80.3 million, and covers 24 MRT stations in the north-western part of Singapore.

Planar One & Associates won the second contract, which covers 35 MRT stations in the north-eastern part of Singapore, and is worth $76.3 million.

Works for both contracts started in the fourth quarter of last year, and will be completed progressively by 2018.


This article was first published on January 3, 2015.
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