But none of them worked when it came to keeping speeds under 40kmh, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) yesterday. It was explaining why the 80-year-old Angsana, spared the chop two years ago at a cost of $200,000, had to go now.

Motorists do not keep to the speed limit when approaching the two split lanes skirting the tree, the LTA said. They run the risk of ramming into it or other cars. This is despite the 'slow' marking on all three lanes and speed-limit signs 90m ahead of the split.

This was the crucial factor which led the LTA and National Parks Board (NParks) to make the decision to cut the tree down, the LTA said in an e-mailed reply to The Straits Times.

Transplanting the tree, an NParks spokesman said, is not an option. The towering tree is too big to be relocated, and even if it is, 'chances are it will not survive'.

Motorists and nature lovers greeted the news of the tree's imminent demise with mixed feelings.

Bishan resident and businessman Ravinder Singh, 37, who uses Braddell Road daily on his drive to and from work, said the tree obstructs the free flow of traffic and must be cut down.

Others, such as architect and conservationist Tay Kheng Soon, who took a drive to the spot before answering queries from The Straits Times, said he thought the tree did not pose a problem to drivers negotiating the stretch of road between Braddell Hill and Raffles Junior College.

The tree was spared the axe two years ago, when construction of the nearly $35 million Lornie-Braddell flyover, designed to ease traffic flow along the corridor spanning Braddell Road, Farrer Road and Queensway, began.

The LTA and NParks said they had considered several options then, such as cutting the tree down and re-designing the flyover.

In the end, they decided to save the tree and impose a 40kmh speed limit.

This was in response to LTA studies, which had shown that a split road would be safe if motorists observed the 40kmh limit.

But when the LTA monitored traffic speeds there, it found that many motorists did not observe the limit.

The LTA also said that some motorists had complained that they had been involved in 'near accident' situations near the tree.

'The difficult decision to cut the Angsana tree is now made as a result of numerous rounds of deliberation, following our observations of driver behaviour at the location,' said the LTA.

It added that it arrived at the conclusion that 'removing the tree is the best, if unfortunate, course of action to prevent any accidents'.

But conservationist organisations like the Singapore Environment Council believe speed cameras could have been used to help enforce speed limits along Braddell Road.

Its executive director Howard Shaw agreed that safety took precedence over keeping the tree. But he also said that better planning could have helped save money.

'The decision to build an island around the tree, at the cost of almost a quarter of a million, should have been more closely examined in the first place,' he pointed out.

The LTA and NParks will begin cutting down the Angsana tree, one of the oldest in Singapore, on Sunday, after which the road will be re-aligned.

A SORE THUMB

'With construction works and heavy traffic along Braddell Road, this tree sticks out like a sore thumb. Please do motorists like me a favour and cut it down.'

BISHAN RESIDENT AND BUSINESSMAN RAVINDER SINGH

LET IT REMAIN

'As I drove past it, I personally did not feel inconvenienced at all. (The drive) was very smooth and I am glad the old tree was saved. Let it remain.'

ARCHITECT AND CONSERVATIONIST TAY KHENG SOON, in an e-mail