Those who cycle to work in the Central Business District (CBD) will soon be able to find more parking spaces.
Two roadside parking spaces in Jiak Chuan Road in Chinatown will be converted into about 20 bicycle parking spaces by the end of next month, with more to come.
In a Facebook post yesterday, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) described the move as part of efforts to develop the cycling path network in the central area.
"As part of our plans to encourage active mobility modes of travel to the CBD area, we will be repurposing several roadside carpark lots into bicycle parking lots," it said.
"We will draw lessons from this flagship effort and make any necessary enhancements before rolling it out to more locations next year," it added.
Separately, in a letter to owners and tenants of shophouses near Jiak Chuan Road, the LTA said that the move to convert the two spaces would help to minimise indiscriminate parking in Chinatown.
The LTA said that the decision was supported by the Urban Redevelopment Authority.
Implementation details will be announced closer to the construction date.
The authorities had previously announced plans for a comprehensive cycling network that would include bicycle paths in all Housing Board towns, park connectors and inter-town routes.
Senior Minister of State for Transport Lam Pin Min said in Parliament in August that Singapore's cycling path network would be extended to 750km by 2025 and would be three times the current length by 2030, increasing from 440km to more than 1,300km.
The LTA's goal is to move Singapore towards a car-lite society through its Walk Cycle Ride vision.
Mr Steven Lim, president of the Safe Cycling Task Force, said that the decision to repurpose the roadside parking spaces sent a strong message about the Government's commitment to promoting active mobility.
"These bicycle spaces will be right smack in the open which will make it more convenient for cyclists, as compared to other parking spaces in the CBD area which might not be so accessible.
"Hopefully people will make use of the spaces... I think it will help in getting more workers there to cycle."
