$63m a year in new grants to improve HDB lifts

A woman entering a lift at Block 317 in Ang Mo Kio Street 31. PHOTO: ST FILE

Town councils will get an extra $600 a year for each lift they own to "help them cope with higher lift-related servicing and maintenance costs", the National Development Ministry said yesterday.

They will also receive half the amount they put into the Lift Replacement Fund for lifts around 28 years and older.

The two new grants will cost the ministry at least $63 million a year and come amid safety worries after a spate of breakdowns.

These are on top of the Lift Enhancement Programme announced last September that will give town councils $450 million in the next 10 years to help modernise lifts - or an average of $45 million a year.

This means town councils will get more than $100 million a year in additional funding for lift expenses. The Lift Replacement Fund goes into effect on April 1. It was announced last week when the ministry said town councils must set aside at least 14 per cent of their income for the fund, on top of existing sinking fund contributions.

The grants announced yesterday are meant to help with the heavier burden. The ministry said: "This is a substantial package to help the town councils with their running costs, and assist them with their lift modernisation and asset replacement programmes."

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on February 03, 2017, with the headline $63m a year in new grants to improve HDB lifts. Subscribe