NParks announces completion of new Villa Verde bridge and underpass, as well as plans for Villa Verde Park extension

- Greater involvement by the community to develop parks tailored to their needs

- New bridge and underpass enhance accessibility for residents

The National Parks Board (NParks) today opened the new Villa Verde bridge, and announced new amenities to enhance accessibility and recreational opportunities for surrounding residents. These include Stagmont Park Connector (PC) and an underpass along Pang Sua PC which will open in June 2021. Villa Verde PC is expected to be completed by mid-2022. NParks also announced plans for a 1.1-hectare extension to the 0.9-hectare Villa Verde Park which will more than double its size. These efforts to further integrate nature into our urban areas and enhance recreational and ecological connectivity will contribute towards NParks’ vision of a City in Nature.

Enhancing accessibility at Villa Verde

The opening of Villa Verde bridge and upcoming underpass and park connectors will enhance accessibility for residents in the surrounding vicinity of Villa Verde. It links major recreational green areas such as Pang Sua PC, Villa Verde Park and its new extension, the Rail Corridor and Choa Chu Kang Park across Kranji Expressway.

Villa Verde Bridge is located between two existing access points to Pang Sua PC from Woodlands Road, via Stagmont Ring and Pang Sua Bridge, which are about 1.3-kilometres apart. With this new bridge, the time taken by residents and park visitors to get across the Pang Sua Canal is significantly reduced.

Users of Pang Sua Park Connector currently need to cross a road at Stagmont Ring. The underpass at Stagmont Ring will provide a safer and more seamless experience for users of Pang Sua PC. Two upcoming park connectors on each side of Kranji Expressway, Stagmont and Villa Verde PCs, will provide residents of Villa Verde and Choa Chu Kang with direct links to green spaces across the expressway such as Villa Verde Park and Choa Chu Kang Park.

The Stagmont PC and underpass at Pang Sua PC are expected to be completed by June 2021. Villa Verde PC will be completed by mid-2022.

Villa Verde Park extension: designed together with the community

In designing the park extension, NParks incorporated feedback and suggestions from the community comprising residents of Villa Verde and Friends of Rail Corridor, following public consultation efforts carried out from September 2020 to March 2021 under the Friends of the Parks Engagement initiative. Friends of the Parks is a ground-led initiative to promote stewardship and responsible use of Singapore’s parks, inspiring communities by involving them in co-creating and implementing parks and park programmes. The aim is to foster community spirit and greater ownership of our nature spaces. Some suggestions which were incorporated included an allotment garden, a multi-purpose plaza for community activities, a dog run, and space for quiet contemplation. There were also ideas for future community involvement and bonding in the park such as community planting, events and appointing park ambassadors to advocate safe and proper usage of park facilities. The park extension is targeted to open in 2022.

In converting the unused land beneath the Kranji Expressway to a park, NParks was provided with a unique opportunity to create different habitats and recreational experiences using the mix of sheltered and unsheltered spaces. For example, users of the play and fitness areas located in areas sheltered by the expressway above enjoy respite from the heat, while plants in the allotment garden may grow well at unsheltered areas.

The planting palette and design of the park extension will take inspiration from its link to the Rail Corridor, and its past as a former gambier plantation. The park will feature a selection of shade-loving plants for areas under the flyover, native plants for areas with adequate sunlight, and grass species that will complement the planting observed along the old railway line. The design has unique trellis forms, which is reminiscent of the area’s history as a former gambier plantation.

To commemorate the opening of accessibility features at Villa Verde, Minister for Education and Adviser for Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC GROs Mr Lawrence Wong and Minister for Health and Adviser for Chua Chu Kang GRC GROs Mr Gan Kim Yong planted a Tristaniopsis merguensis. Together with residents of Villa Verde, a total of nearly 40 trees of different species were planted today as part of the OneMillionTrees movement.

The OneMillionTrees movement is a key component of our efforts to further extend nature into our urban landscape and help make Singapore more resilient to the impacts of urbanisation and climate change. NParks will work with the community to plant more than a million trees across Singapore by 2030, enabling the community to forge closer bonds through active stewardship of the environment.

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