Expressways of Singapore

The expressways of Singapore are special roads allowing motorists to travel quickly from one urban area to another. All of them are dual carriageways with grade-separated access. They usually have three to four lanes in each direction, although there are two-lane or five-lane carriageways in some places. There are nine expressways, including the Kallang-Paya Lebar Expressway which is partially completed, and another one to start construction in 2008, the Marina Coastal Expressway. Studies about the feasibility of additional expressways are ongoing.

Construction on the first expressway, the Pan Island Expressway, started in 1966. The other expressways were completed in stages, with an extension of the Seletar Expressway being the most recently completed, in 1999. Today, there are 148 km (92 miles) of expressways in Singapore. [cite web | url=http://www.aas.com.sg/features/archive/otr07013.htm | title=Expressways in Singapore: Did you know? | accessdate=2006-04-05 | month=July | year=2001|publisher=Automobile Association of Singapore | work=The Highway]

The Singaporean expressway networks are connected with Malaysian expressway networks via Ayer Rajah Expressway (connects with the Second Link Expressway in Malaysia) and Bukit Timah Expressway (connects with the Skudai Highway via Johor-Singapore Causeway).

Expansion

The latest expressway under construction is the Kallang-Paya Lebar Expressway which runs for 12 km, 9 km of which are 10 m underground. Construction started in 2001 and a 3 km section linking the Pan Island Expressway and East Coast Parkway is opened in late 2007. It is expected to be completed in 2008, with its entire length due for opening on 20 September 2008cite web| url=https://app-pac.mica.gov.sg/data/vddp/embargo/27390895.htm | title=SPEECH BY MR RAYMOND LIM,MINISTER FOR TRANSPORT, AT VISIT TO KALLANG-PAYA LEBAR EXPRESSWAY, 30 JANUARY 2008, 10.15 AM | publisher=Singapore Government Media Release | date=2008-01-30 ] .

On the 27 July 2007, the Land Transport Authority announced that approval had been given for the construction of a new 5 km long Marina Coastal Expressway (MCE) at a cost of $2.5 billion. [" [http://app.lta.gov.sg/corp_press_content.asp?start=1802 Government Approves the Construction of MCE] " Land Transport Authority 27 July 2007] The underground expressway will link the East Coast Parkway and Kallang-Paya Lebar Expressway to Marina South and Ayer Rajah Expressway and will be completed by end 2013.

Construction of the 11th expressway, the North-South Expressway, was announced on 30 January 2008. The new 21-kilometre expressway would cost about S7 to $8 billion when fully complete by 2020 and connect the East Coast Parkway with the northern parts of Singapore.

Features

There are no traffic lights on the expressways. At an interchange with another road, an expressway is connected to it via slip roads. This allows traffic to change routes without having to stop or slow down. Due to the need to conserve space in land-scarce Singapore, there are no cloverleaf interchanges on the entire island. Instead, traffic efficiency and land space are maximized by having traffic lights on terrestrials roads, as well as the usage of interchanges such as Stack interchanges. The most common forms of highway-road or highway-highway intersections are SPUI, diamond and trumpet.

Certain types of transport, such as pedestrians, bicycles, and learner drivers, are not allowed. The speed limit is usually 90 km/h (56 mph); however, the old limit of 80 km/h (50 mph) still applies at certain stretches. Speed cameras are used to enforce these limits.

The road surface is asphalt, unlike normal roads which may have concrete surfaces. The lanes are separated with white dashed lines, while unbroken white lines are used to mark the edges of the median and shoulder. The shoulder is reserved for stops due to breakdowns and emergencies, and motorists are prohibited by law from travelling on it. Lanes are numbered from right to left, with lane 1 being the closest to the median. Crash barriers, cat's eyes and rumble strips are also used to ensure road safety.

There are signs marking the start and end of an expressway at its entry and exit points respectively. The Electronic Monitoring and Advisory System is used on all the expressways — cameras are used for live monitoring of expressway conditions, and LED signboards display information messages, such as warnings of any disruptions to the normal flow of traffic, as well as estimated travel times. The Bukit Timah Expressway is part of the AH2 Asian Highway Network. The longest expressway, the Pan Island Expressway, is only 41 km (25 miles) long and therefore there are no rest areas.

emi-expressways of Singapore

In Singapore, there are three semi-expressways: Nicoll Highway, the Outer Ring Road System (ORRS) and West Coast Highway. These semi-expressways are scaled down versions of expressways. Semi-expressways do not have a uniform speed limit through its entire length, and some sections still feature traffic light controlled junctions, such as the eastern section of the ORRS and the controlled roundabout along the West Coast Highway. Still, just like expressways, semi-expressways allow motorists to travel quickly from one urban area to another with the use of viaducts, overpasses and underpasses.

See also

* Motorway
* Freeway

References