'It looks quite run-down': Iconic Road Safety Community Park to be redeveloped

SINGAPORE: For Marine Parade resident Eric Ngiow, the Road Safety Community Park brings back memories of acting as a pedestrian while his “luckier” primary school classmates got to be go-kart drivers or cyclists.

Three decades later and the 40-year-old now takes his daughter there to cycle once every few months. Located at East Coast Park, it is a short drive from their home.

While the mock road circuit there also serves as a perfect learning space for Mr Ngiow’s child, he echoed what other park-goers have noticed: “It looks quite run-down and old.”

This is set to change. The iconic park, which has operated at East Coast Park since 1981, will soon get a facelift and go beyond hosting schoolchildren on field trips.

The Singapore Police Force told CNA that the traffic police will “redevelop and modernise” the Road Safety Community Park in the coming years "to adapt to the evolving road and traffic environment".

“We plan to host families so that the children can learn road safety education alongside their parents and their grandparents,” said Superintendent Jimmy Law, commanding officer of the traffic police’s road safety branch.

Speaking to CNA during a visit to the Road Safety Community Park, he added that more details on the modernisation plan and timeline will be announced once relevant studies have been completed.

Earlier this month, the Ministry of Home Affairs published a tender on the government procurement website GeBIZ, calling for project management and consultancy services for redevelopment works at the park. The tender closed on Dec 21.

This also comes as road accidents resulting in injuries or fatalities in Singapore rose from 3,169 in the first half of 2022 to 3,542 in the same period this year.

Drink driving accidents spiked 21.4 per cent from 70 in the first half of 2022 to 85 in the same period this year as well. The traffic police flagged the rising number of accidents involving motorcyclists and elderly pedestrians as being “of continuing concern”.

65 YEARS OF HISTORY

The park’s somewhat dilapidated state may lead people to believe that it is abandoned, but this is far from the truth. Students from about 200 primary schools paid visits there last year; Primary 4 students form the bulk of visitors, though the occasional Primary 5 or 6 batch also turns up.

Their parents or even grandparents would have been among several past generations of Singaporeans who formed core memories at the park, which first opened at Kallang Park in 1961 amid an uptick in the number of vehicles and drivers on the road pre-independence.

The Traffic Games were held there annually. However, the Road Safety Park – as it was then called – had to close in 1967 due to the construction of the old National Stadium.

It reopened at its current location at 910 East Coast Parkway in 1981. It was renamed in 2002 to include the word “community”, as a reminder that everyone in the community has a part to play in road safety.

Students take on different roles as drivers, cyclists or pedestrians during school visits, learning proper road safety rules and etiquette such as how to cross at a zebra crossing. Demerit points are doled out for any violations.

The road circuit comes with traffic signs and signals as well as miniature buildings – including bus stops, the Toyota service centre and a petrol station with kid-sized petrol pumps – to simulate an actual traffic environment.

Either students or cadets from the National Police Cadet Corps youth uniformed group act as traffic marshals.

In 2017, the traffic police also introduced a virtual reality component for rainy days. Students strap on VR goggles and undergo interactive simulations of traffic scenarios like how to safely board a bus or cross the road.

Last month, the traffic police and Singapore Road Safety Council, with the support of the education ministry, commemorated the 65th anniversary of the Singapore Traffic Games. Elias Park Primary School emerged triumphant, out of 26 primary schools that participated in the qualifying rounds.

A special stamp pack featuring photographs of four generations of students participating in the games was also produced for stakeholders and partners who contributed significantly to the games.

Mr Bernard Tay, chairman of the Singapore Road Safety Council, stressed the importance of road safety education “to start with our young children so that it shapes (them) into responsible road users when they grow up”.

Parents like Mr Ngiow, who also has a toddler son, said they were keen on being able to accompany their kids in the future to learn about road safety.

“The roads nowadays, they can get quite congested and there is so much construction where we’re staying,” he added.

He also suggested having formal programmes that families can sign up to attend at the Road Safety Community Park.

“Maybe adults can refresh their safety education with their kids … I think some need that,” he quipped.