News Releases

28 FEBRUARY 2003

1. The Draft Master Plan 2003 for the West Region aims to enhance the region so as to provide a good mix of housing, commercial, educational and recreational facilities that can respond to changing business needs.



2. Currently, there are about 243,000 homes in the West Region, amid facilities for work and play. The West region has about 22,700 hectares (ha) of land area and comprises 12 planning areas, namely Bukit Batok, Bukit Panjang, Boon Lay, Pioneer, Choa Chu Kang, Clementi, Jurong East, Jurong West, Tengah, Tuas, Western Islands and Western Water Catchment.



3. Plans have been drawn up to enhance live, work and play places in the West region.
   

   LIVE

   • There will be more homes, community facilities and educational institutions, and an enhanced transport network to make the West region a great place to live and learn.
     

   WORK

   • The business vibrancy of the Jurong Regional Centre will be enhanced. There will be greater mix of uses giving businesses flexibility. New and existing developments around the regional centre will also be integrated with the existing transport nodes via a network of linkages to provide better connectivity.
     

   PLAY

   • To capitalise on the region's unique natural features, more green spaces will be opened up for people to enjoy.
     
   LIVE in the West
   

68,000 more housing units in the West

4. To provide residents in the West with a wider choice of housing locations and types, there will be 68,000 more new housing units.
   

New homes in familiar areas

5. More new homes will be built within mature towns like Clementi, Jurong East and Jurong West allowing people to live close to their parents. New homes with younger residents will promote greater social integration and help revitalise mature towns.
   

Homes near MRT and LRT stations

6. Residents in the West can look forward to enjoying the convenience of living near transport nodes with more housing sites planned near transit stations.
   

Variety of housing types

7. Future residents can also choose from a variety of housing types including landed housing.
   

New regional library and hospital, more facilities coming...

Upgraded Jurong Regional Library

8. Come 2004, residents can enjoy a bigger and better library after the renovations of the current Jurong East Community Library at Jurong Town Hall Road. Five times the size of the Orchard Library with a collection of 500,000 books, it is geared to become the new regional library for the West.
   

Community facilities under one roof

9. Residents can benefit from greater convenience with the co-location of compatible community uses under one roof. Zhenghua Community Club will be housed with a Neighbourhood Police Centre when completed by end 2004.
   

More shopping places in Yew Tee and Boon Lay

10. Adequate facilities will be introduced to cater to the increasing population. For instance, residents can look forward to more retail amenities in Yew Tee and Boon Lay.

New Jurong General Hospital

11. Located near the Jurong East MRT station, the new Jurong General Hospital is set to provide full health care services for the residents in the West when it opens in the next few years. It will have 650 beds for warded patients and 90 specialist clinics for outpatients.
    

More places of learning to come

12. The West Region is an established learning environment anchored by the historic Nanyang Technological University. It will be become even more conducive for learning with additional education facilities, including a 12-ha Institute of Technical Education (ITE) campus in Choa Chu Kang by 2010, and a new junior college in Bukit Batok by 2005.




Greater accessibility with enhanced transport network

Jurong Regional Line

13. Residents in Jurong East and Jurong West and those living beyond the East-West MRT line, and students and staff of Nanyang Technological University will be able to travel conveniently on the future Jurong Regional Line, a light rail system to complement the MRT line.
    

Wider roads

14. Motorists will also enjoy smoother traffic flow when roads such as West Coast Highway, Toh Guan Link and Jurong Town Hall Road are widened to enhance the existing road network and to support the increasing number of residents in the West.
    

WORK in the West

Giving businesses flexibility

15. In addition to implementing the new Business 1 and Business 2 zones in place of existing industrial and warehouse sites, selective Business Park-White sites within the International Business Park, closer to the Jurong East MRT Station, have been identified. These sites will enjoy an even greater flexibility to have mixed uses within a Business Park environment.
    

Enhancing vibrancy of Jurong Regional Centre

16. Centered on an existing major transport hub and surrounded by towns and facilities, the Jurong Regional Centre (JRC) is the focal point of the West region. There will be greater mix of uses, varied building developments and better connectivity and integration with new and existing developments. It will provide an exciting, integrated live-work-play environment.
    

Improving character of JRC

17. There will be a variety of uses and building developments to enhance the character and business vibrancy of JRC. For example, smaller sites are planned near the HDB Town Centre to strengthen its existing character, while larger sites are planned near the MRT station to provide better integration with the transport nodes.

Providing easy access

18. To allow easy access to surrounding developments, the existing Jurong East MRT station and bus interchange will be enhanced and integrated with new and existing developments. People will also be able to walk comfortably through a network of linkages between buildings, transport facilities, pedestrian malls, open spaces and other community facilities. For example, there will be a second storey pedestrian walkway to connect Jurong Regional Hospital, International Business Park, JTC Summit, new developments around the MRT station and Jurong Town Hall via the second storey concourse of the Jurong East MRT station.

Creating open spaces

19. To enhance the vibrancy of the regional centre, a new open space for recreational and community activities will be created at the heart of JRC. To optimise the use of land under the MRT viaducts, there are plans for open spaces linking the Jurong East MRT station to the International Business Park.

Improving road network

20. To enhance the road network around the JRC and to alleviate congestion at Jurong Town Hall Road, Jurong East Street 11 will be extended to link up with the Pan Island Expressway (PIE). An alternative route providing a more direct access from PIE to the regional centre will be introduced.

PLAY in the West

21. Presently, the West region has a wide range of attractive amenities including parks and sports facilities for people to enjoy. Residents in the West can look forward to more sporting facilities and greens areas in the future.
    

New sports complex

22. By end 2004, residents will be able to jog, play soccer, tennis, swim and do other sports in a new integrated sports complex in Jurong West. In addition, residents in Bukit Panjang will also enjoy new sports facilities in the near future.
    

Larger parks

23. Another 160 ha of greens including new town parks, park extensions and park connectors will be added in the West region.



24. Some of the existing parks in the West region will be enlarged in the Master Plan 2003. These include extensions to Choa Chu Kang Town Park, Zhenghua Park, Bukit Batok Nature Park, Bukit Batok Town Park, Pandan Reservoir Park and Clementi Woods Park.



25. Dairy Farm Nature Park, a 50ha permanent open space, is also proposed in the Master Plan 2003 to serve as a buffer zone to help to conserve and protect the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. The Dairy Farm Nature Park includes the former Dairy Farm Quarry and Singapore Quarry, which will provide possible recreational opportunities for the more adventurous.
    

New interim parks

26. Additional areas where development is not needed in the near future will be opened up as interim parks. These include Jurong West Park and Jurong Lake Park. Residents will also be able to hike and cycle in the 12ha interim green bordering Dairy Farm Nature Park.
    

Protecting natural beauty in the West

27. The Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is undoubtedly a precious gem of the West region. To recognise and safeguard this natural heritage, the gazetted nature reserve is now reflected in the Draft Master Plan 2003. There are other nature areas within the West that will be recognised in the Special & Detailed Control Plan and kept for as long as the land is not required for development. These include the Bukit Batok Nature Areas, Bukit Timah and Dairy Farm Nature Areas and part of Western Catchment Area.
    

EXHIBITION DETAILS

28. The Draft Master Plan 2003 (West Region) exhibition will be held from 28 Feb to 20 Mar 2003, at the ground floor atrium of The URA Centre. Opening hours are: Mon - Fri, 8.30 am - 7 pm; Sat, 8.30 am - 4.30 pm; closed on Sundays and public holidays. Admission is free. The exhibition is also available online on URA's website http://www.ura.gov.sg



29. The Draft Master Plan 2003 should be read together with the Draft Written Statement 2003. The Draft Written Statement 2003, available at the exhibition and online, explains and illustrates the main proposals in the Draft Master Plan 2003.



30. Posters will be displayed at all the community centres/clubs in the West region to inform the residents and encourage them to visit the exhibition.



31. The public can provide their feedback on the Draft Master Plan 2003 (West Region) by filling up the feedback form available at the exhibition or online via the URA website. Objections or representations, with supporting justifications, will have to be made in writing to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of National Development, Maxwell Road, Singapore 069110 on or before 20 Mar 2003.