Orchard revamp a step in the right direction, say experts

Pedestrianisation of Orchard Road is a step in the right direction, said observers, as they flagged considerations and floated suggestions for the proposal to work.

“Great cities have great streets, and many of them are pedestrianised,” said urban planner William Lau. The former president of the Singapore Institute of Planners gave the Myeongdong shopping district in Seoul as an example.

“It is very vibrant. The shops spill out onto the street there,” he said, adding that accommodation would have to be made for buildings which are accessible to vehicles only via Orchard Road.

Redirecting traffic around the area may be difficult as it is not built on a grid, said National University of Singapore transport researcher Lee Der Horng.

But Mr Gopinath Menon, transport consultant and senior research fellow at the Nanyang Technological University, felt pedestrianisation could be done with little impact to vehicular traffic. He suggested that Orchard Boulevard, which runs parallel to Orchard Road between Orchard Link and Grange Road, could be converted to a two-way road to accommodate traffic. Public transport can serve as an alternative to cars for shoppers headed to the area.