Forum: Excerpts from readers’ letters

Turn Orchard Road forested area into a world-famous park

There was a lovely article the other day, giving the history of the forested open space in Orchard Boulevard (Why is there a forest in the middle of Orchard Road?, Jan 18).

Great cities have parks in the city centre (New York’s Central Park, London’s Hyde Park). Bangkok, too, has a city centre park with skywalks and lotus ponds.

Like the Orchard Road Business Association, I, too, hope a park can be put on the site since there are no immediate plans to develop it for housing.

It would be wonderful to have walkways, biking trails, an outdoor cafe, places for jogging and in-line skating, and maybe even an open-air arena for concerts and shows.

Orchard Road is a world-famous shopping destination. It would be great to have a world-famous park right beside it.

Eric Rosenkranz

Consider giving out waterproof fitness trackers

While the Health Promotion Board’s efforts to get Singaporeans to live healthier lives are commendable, the latest release of the complimentary Healthy 365 fitness tracker falls short of the mark, by not catering to swimmers. The Axtro Fit 4 fitness tracker is water-resistant but not waterproof.

This is unfortunate as many Singaporeans love to swim. About 5.6 million public swimming pool visits were recorded in 2023, and I’m sure many more swim at condominium and private pools.

It would be wonderful if the next release of the tracker could meet waterproof specifications. I wouldn’t mind paying a nominal fee to defray the cost of a tracker that collects data across all my exercise routines, including swimming. 

Gurmit Singh Kullar