CHARMING CANBERRA Where Do You Live? Canberra
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NOVEMBER 2019 RISING TO THE TRANSPORT CHALLENGE THE FUTURE OF TRANSPORT AT CYCLING IN THE CITY ITSWC 2019 A HUB OF CHARMING CONVENIENCE CANBERRA FOR OUR DAILY COMMUTE S T A N D A C H A N C E T O W I N P R I Z E S W O R T H $ 4 0 ! CHARMING CANBERRA Where do you live? Canberra. In Australia? No, in Singapore. Huh? Many know Sembawang, but few have heard of Canberra – an estate within Sembawang with a rich history. Named after the capital of Australia, roads at the former Singapore Naval Base were coined after former British colonies and territories. This residential estate in the far north of Singapore is currently undergoing an exciting phase of rapid development, starting with the opening of a new MRT station. NEW ADDITION TO NORTH-SOUTH LINE Commuters on one of Singapore’s The new Canberra Station, which oldest lines – the North-South Line – started serving commuters on may have spotted the jump in station November 2, is a much-welcomed number between Sembawang (NS11) addition for residents and those and Yishun (NS13). working at the adjacent Yishun Industrial Park A. While the station was planned, it was not built – until now. It was constructed The station will benefit over 17,000 in tandem with property developments households that are within a 10-minute in the surrounding area, ready to meet walk. Commuters will be able to save the growing commuting needs. up to 10 minutes in travel time towards the city centre as they will no longer need to alight at Yishun Station or Sembawang Station. DID YOU KNOW? After Dover Station on the East-West Line, A 72-metre long crossover track has been constructed Canberra Station is the second station to be near the station to enhance the resilience of the North- built along an existing track. South Line. This allows trains to change directions and continue two-way service in the event where one side of the tracks is out-of-service. Canberra Station will be the first elevated TO YISHUN MRT station with an overhead link bridge that connects commuters directly to the city-bound train platform. TO SEMBAWANG DISCOVERING THE CANBERRA TRAIL Discover some of these little-known attractions up north, which are now more accessible with the new Canberra Station! 1 JLN MALU-MALU 2 DURIAN TREES Nestled within the residential estate of Jln Malu-Malu (which A mini patch of forested land between Canberra Station and means ‘Shy’ or “Embarrassed” road in Malay), restaurants and Sembawang Drive is home to many wildlife and natural shops in the area are rather retro, giving a nostalgic vibe of the 80s. vegetation. But what is most sought after by people – and possibly wild monkeys too – are the durian trees. Among them is Happy Village Restaurant – an old-school eatery which offers a village-like dining experience. Hungry patrons “There are several durian trees that are still bearing fruit. dine al fresco style under a big makeshift tent which surrounds People can sometimes be seen meandering around, trying the perimeter of the shopfront. their luck during the fruiting season.” The Chinese restaurant serves delectable Tze Char dishes, Standing tall up to a few storeys including its signature Happy Village Chicken that is served to the in height, durian trees are table with the poultry perched upright on a vertical roasting stand. distinctive for their straight and It is a place with good ambience, akin to a small town setting. reinforced trucks. Try spotting them from the train station the If you prefer western bar food, Flamingg Mangos is your stop. next time when you are at the The laid-back and rustic open-air eatery offers grilled meat and platform. fries with the perfect accompaniment of a mug of ice-cold beer. 3 WALKING AND CYCLING NETWORK You can walk, jog, or cycle along a picturesque canal from Canberra Station to the seaside at Sembawang Park, home to one of Singapore’s natural beaches. During the day, white-throated kingfishers can be spotted along the 4-km park connecter. At the park, nature lovers can spot many species of wildlife and animals – with over 30 bird species as well as squirrels and monkeys. A lone Sembawang tree still stands in the centre of the park, a reminder that the town was named after the same species of trees. Children will rejoice at the one-of-a-kind battleship playground where they can embark on a nautical adventure and let their imaginations run wild. It is a massive play structure that comes complete with gun turrets and a maze of decks and escape slides. 4 HOLY TREE SRI BALASUBRAMANIAR TEMPLE What started off as a simple makeshift following grew, an appeal was made by altar under a holy Elantha tree grew the devotees to the Commodore of Her into a full-fledged temple built in Majesty’s Naval Dockyard to designate the mangrove swamplands west of the original site an official place of Canberra Road. In 1962, a Hindu naval worship – which he agreed to. worker at the then British Royal Navy Dockyard (now Sembawang Naval The original temple, built in 1964, was Base) built an altar at the tree after constructed with support from the British having a dream of Lord Murugan navy who contributed building materials under an Elantha tree. and logistical support. The temple relocated to its present site, southwest of Word of the altar spread fast, quickly Canberra Station in the 1990s. drawing in many devotees. As the 5 CANBERRA PLAZA (UNDER CONSTRUCTION) Dining, shopping and recreation are (HDB), Canberra Plaza promises just an overhead bridge away from to be a one-stop mall that Canberra Station. Canberra Plaza will integrates various amenities have a nautical theme design, inspired to serve the needs of residents by flowing rivers of the adjacent living in the area. Sungei Simpang Kiri canal and the area’s heritage as a former naval hub. When you are done with shopping, an elevated link bridge across As one of the many new generation Canberra Link directly connects neighbourhood centres built by the mall-goers to the city-bound train Housing and Development Board platform – a first in Singapore. 6 SEMBAWANG HOT SPRING (UNDER RENOVATION) Singapore may not have volcanoes, occupation, the site was converted but hot water still gushes out from the into thermal baths for use ground just north of Chong Pang Camp by military officers. between Yishun and Sembawang. Today, it is open to the public for The Sembawang Hot Spring everyone to enjoy. Works to develop this is Singapore’s only hot spring. area into Sembawang Hot Spring Park Discovered in the early 1900s, bottled are on-going and expected to complete water believed to contain medicinal in January 2020. Hot spring water is still qualities was previously manufactured available on site and you can try making at this source. During the Japanese your own hot spring eggs. 7 BUKIT CANBERRA (UNDER CONSTRUCTION) A 12-hectare site next to Sembawang initiative by Sport Singapore (SportSG), MRT station will soon become a hub for residents will no longer need to travel to sports, healthcare, leisure and food. The neighbouring towns for their sporting S$1.5 billion integrated hub, expected to and leisure fix. open in June 2020, will bring together a wide range of amenities. Residents can look forward to the largest ActiveSG gym, an indoor sports hall, covered swimming pool, a polyclinic, hawker centre, among others. An ITS World Congress 2019 Organising Committee 2019 Organising Congress ITS World th Photo credits: 26 Photo credits: THE FUTURE OF TRANSPORT AT ITSWC 2019! Self-driving shuttle pods, autonomous buses and air taxis – these seem to exist only in sci-fi movies. Visitors to the 26th Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) World Congress 2019 held in Singapore from 21 to 25 October 2019, however, caught some of these up close and personal! This was the first time the prestigious The Congress shone the spotlight on The city-state hopes to advance the ITSWC made its way to Southeast Asia, Singapore’s role as a thought leader capabilities and potential of ITS, and with Singapore playing host to one of the in the global transportation industry. develop into an ITS research and largest international transport events. Singapore has, in fact, been leading the technology hub. Themed “Smart Mobility, Empowering way in ITS, and ranks among the top Cities”, the event drew close to 14,500 countries in terms of readiness to adopt local and international participants from self-driving cars, as seen in the latest more than 90 countries who looked rankings by global market intelligence at how a smart transport system can firm, KPMG. This stems from strong enhance a city’s economic growth and government support and openness to improve the quality of life of its residents. developing new transport technologies for better and more efficient commutes. HOW SINGAPORE CAME TO HOST THE ITSWC A small nation’s dream to host the world’s leading transport technology congress was almost five years in the making. That came true four and a half years ago, when the Land Transport Authority and the Intelligent Transport Society Singapore won the bid to host the ITS World Congress. This positioned Singapore as a thought leader and practitioner in the area of ITS technologies development research. Three cheers for the team! REIMAGINING MOBILITY, TRANSFORMING CITIES The inaugural Autonomous Mobility be expanded to the whole of western (AM) Summit took place on 24 October Singapore. The expanded testbed will as an associated event of the ITS World open up more than 1,000km of public Congress 2019.