URA reveals development plan for Kampong Bugis

Shouldering the Kallang riverside, Kampong Bugis, will be revamped in the upcoming years with the focus on alternate transport modes and flood prevention. Residents will be encouraged to commute via trains from two existing nearby MRT stations, Kallang and Lavender, and public buses, announced the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). Water taxis would also be an alternate option in the future, according to URA.

According to The Straits Times, URA would encourage developers to explore having car and bicycle-sharing programmes in the area. "With alternative modes of travel easily available, it may be possible to provide fewer carpark lots for future residential developments here," URA explained.

Kampong Bugis has also been identified for a pilot water management project, due to its location at the junction of two major waterways - Rochor Canal and the Kallang River. The project will incorporate a storm water management system and other features designed to protect against flooding, added the local paper.

Two possible features include vegetated swales, and bio-retention basins - shallow basins where storm water can be collected and treated. Detention ponds, are another possibility which can contain water for a limited time. Such ponds are often used to protect against extreme flooding.

With the changes, the URA believes these features could pave the way for the area to become a new international model for water management in high-density precincts.