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'Not acceptable' for major expressway to close due to flooding: Minister Balakrishnan
Yahoo Newsroom – 19 hours ago- Yahoo Newsroom - Photo taken by @dnamejasmine while on Ayer Rajah Expressway.
Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan said it's "not acceptable" for a major expressway to shut down due to flooding.
He was referring to the early morning floods sparked by a torrential downpour on Thursday which hit mostly the western areas of Singapore and forced the temporary closure of the Ayer Rajah Expressway.
"We're going to need to do some work there," he said.
"We will need some time, but I am confident that we can make an improvement to the situation...I told (national water agency) PUB we've got to do our best to make sure this doesn't recur in the future."
He was speaking on the sidelines of an event at the National University of Singapore.
PUB said in a statement that all four lanes of the Expressway were temporarily closed due to overflowing drains and the rising tide.Flood waters reached a depth of half a metre and subsided within 40 minutes.
PUB said it has plans to upgrade the Sungei Pandan Kechil, which serves this section of the AYE.
"We will need some time, but I am confident that we can make an improvement to the situation...I told (national water agency) PUB we've got to do our best to make sure this doesn't recur in the future."
He was speaking on the sidelines of an event at the National University of Singapore.
PUB said in a statement that all four lanes of the Expressway were temporarily closed due to overflowing drains and the rising tide.Flood waters reached a depth of half a metre and subsided within 40 minutes.
PUB said it has plans to upgrade the Sungei Pandan Kechil, which serves this section of the AYE.
Heavy rain fell over the central and western parts of Singapore from 8.15am to 9.30am. Commonwealth area and Kent Ridge were among the areas hardest hit by flash floods.
Earlier in the day, Dr Balakrishnan posted photos and a note on his Facebook page which said his "regular jogging track was under water".
He said drainage improvement work at Commonwealth Avenue will be completed by June 2015.
"The flooding at AYE will require expansion of the Sungai Pandan Kechil which drains south to the sea and is subject to tidal influence. This is a major project that PUB has been considering. Will have to expedite this," he added.
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