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Woe to the Seng Kang Heavy Vehicle Driver
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Audio : Listen
Recently, I noticed something about my neighbourhood estate.
A lot of lorries, school buses, vans, and other heavy vehicles (HV) all parked illegally along side roads, service roads, un-commissioned (is that the word for it?) roads, etc. This is a common sight if you drive around Seng Kang neighbourhood in the evenings after 2000hrs.
For the record, I am not complaining against them. Read on...
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Scenario
You are a bus driver. It is 1930hrs and time to call it a day. You are beat and yearn badly for that cosy cushion at home (now, I am just being dramatic here).
You own a flat in Seng Kang - but you can't drive home to it. You will first have to park your HV at Defu Lane (which happens to be where the nearest HV park is) before making your way home. Reaching the HV Park at 1945hrs, you have to decide how you should get yourself home.
Your options include;
1. Bicycle
2. Public Transport (bus, taxi)
3. Walk
Taking the bicycle seems to be a great option. It is free and you get to exercise those muscles. But, you are already tired. Where to find strength to cycle from Defu Lane back home?
You decide to try the public transport. The buses come in 10-15 minute intervals. By the time you get home, it is about a quarter past 8(at least). By far, this seems to be the best option. Taking the taxi? You decide that you are not that rich.
Walking home is a definite NO-NO for you. You would rather cycle!
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With this scenario, I wrote to the URA. A reply I got from them says...
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2 There is a deliberate government policy since 2000, not to build any
more HV parking facilities in or near HDB estates. This is in
response to complaints and feedback from other residents about the
noise, safety hazard and disamenity posed by the parking of such
vehicles. As HVs are intended for business use and not as means of
personal transport for drivers to use to commute between their homes
and their workplaces, HV drivers like other workers should leave
their HVs in their place of work and commute home via public transport
or other means of personal transport. Where more HV parking
facilities are needed, they would be provided at workplaces like in
industrial estates.
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Hmm... to provide HV parking within housing estates is considered a 'DISAMENITY'. So cheem. What I do know is that this creates a whole lot of inconvenience for HV drivers!
I understand the views of these 'other residents' in view of the noise, safety hazards, etc. HV might create.
My suggestions/views to URA were...
1. There are parcels of land within the housing estates that are of relatively comfortable distances from the main residential areas. These can be used for HV parking with minimal 'disturbance' to residents.
2. The number of illegally parked HV is high here in Seng Kang. This reflects on the need to have HV parking nearer the estates as a lot of these drivers would rather risk getting booked for a parking offence then to park in Defu Lane.
3. Ok, HV are considered working vehicles and should be left at work place. What if I own a school bus (PRIVATE one ok!?!) No office, no workplace. Where to park? Gahmen should consider this too!
Just last week, I got a reply from URA saying...
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2. While it is inconvenient for HV drivers, the decision not to provide
any more heavy vehicle (HV) parks in or near HDB estates was made to
protect the amenity of the larger population of residents. It is not
a popular decision and we have received appeals from some residents,
both through the media and through the Members of Parliament, for some
relieve - at least while there still some vacant lands further away
from the residential blocks which are not required for development
yet.
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Note! It says '...not a popular decision...' so why gahmen say that it was due to feedback and complaints that they 'deliberately implemented' (see previous quote on URA's first reply to me) this policy of not building any HV parking facilities in/near HDB estates?!?!? If it was not a popular decision now, could it have been so overwhelming in the first place to 'influence' the gahmen to make their decision?
WTF!
End of the day gahmen say, gahmen do. What to do?
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moe at 6/17/2005 10:43:00 AM
