Good investment to boost lift safety

With residential blocks getting taller, coupled with an ageing population, especially in public housing estates, modernising lifts with more security features will hopefully remove residents' fear of being trapped or injured in lifts, given the recent spate of lift malfunctions ("$450m set aside to boost safety of HDB lifts"; Tuesday).

The amount to be spent is definitely a very wise investment.

Residents' fear of being trapped and injured in lifts will be lowered.

Residents' perception that lifts are reliable - at around 86 per cent, based on HDB Sample Household Surveys - would improve.

Equally important, with improved lift security and reliability, more residents, especially the less mobile elderly, would spend more time on the ground to exercise and interact with their neighbours, leading to healthier and more harmonious living.

Gan Kok Tiong

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on September 22, 2016, with the headline Good investment to boost lift safety. Subscribe