SINGAPORE - Pedestrians will be spared the climb at some overhead bridges in areas such as Toa Payoh and Bendemeer in a few years' time.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) called a tender to build lifts at 27 more overhead bridges on Thursday (Sept 19).
These will be progressively installed from 2022, and are in addition to the lifts that LTA previously committed to building.
Three of the overhead bridges that will be installed with lifts are at Block 195 Jalan Toa Payoh, in Lorong 6 Toa Payoh near Pei Chun Public School, and in Bendemeer Road near Bendemeer Primary School.
In a Facebook post, the LTA said the additional lifts will help commuters, such as the elderly and people with special needs, get to their destinations more conveniently and comfortably.
"This lifts are typically built near healthcare institutions, schools or public transport facilities... to ensure our public transport system continues to be accessible to everyone," the LTA added.
The plan, when completed, will bring the total number of overhead bridges with lifts to 103.
Forty-seven pedestrian overhead bridges have been installed with lifts since 2013.
Under the Land Transport Master Plan 2040, 29 more pedestrian overhead bridges, including those near hospitals and polyclinics, will be installed with lifts by 2022.
The LTA had said that these lifts will help to make journeys to public housing estates and public-sector infrastructure barrier-free.
In a written parliamentary reply last year, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan said that installing a pair of lifts at an overhead bridge can cost up to $4 million, and about $40,000 a year to maintain.
