The great Singapore squeeze: population density discussed

Beat the weekend crowds – take a weekday off instead
Overcrowding will inevitably cause social tension
Today Online 9 Jan 08;

Letter from JEFFREY LAW LEE BENG
Letter from DENNIS BUTLER

I read with interest Mr John Lucas' letter, "Do we want to be No 1 for population density?" (Weekend Today, Jan 5-6).

The quality of life need not be adversely affected in a densely-populated country if we are innovative enough to plan and able to make changes to lifestyles.

Given the typical five-day work week here, places of interest are inevitably crowded on the weekends.

Must we plan visits to places such as East Coast Park and Bukit Timah Nature Reserve on weekends? Why can't we do so on a weekday? Applying for a day off to spend time with your family isn't too much to ask for, isn't it?

On weekdays, you can shop in comfort as the malls are less crowded. Finding a parking lot is a breeze.

I believe we need to increase our population to beef up our workforce. And with the development of more tourism-related infrastructure, more people will be required to work round-the-clock.

Reaching the 6-million population target will also necessitate lifestyle changes and we may have to work staggered hours. Business hours for shops and services may also have to be extended.


I refer to Mr John Lucas' letter and find it hard to reconcile the need to maintain social cohesion with the Government's plans to expand the population to 6 million or more in land-sparse Singapore.

And thanks to the tacit acceptance and encouragement of disruptive en bloc sales, condominium residents like me risk being forced into pigeonhole-like structures that are being constructed in this current property boom.

To me, this seems to be part of a policy to squeeze us into even closer proximity to make room for a denser population.

I realise that Singapore cannot afford to stand still, but if more people are put on this island, we will become gridlocked into immobility. I don't understand how overcrowding — and the tensions that will arise — will contribute to the quality of life in Singapore.