Submerged boardwalk now white elephant

Letter from Chin Kee Thou Today Online 18 Jan 12;

THE submerged boardwalk at MacRitchie Reservoir was opened officially on Oct 11 as part of the second phase of the Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters programme there.

The national water agency PUB had said that the boardwalk would offer visitors the charming experience of walking through shallow waters to see the plants and be in close contact with fishes and other aquatic life.

Since the end of October, the water has been drained. Ironically, this attracted more traffic to the boardwalk as a shorter route to Lornie Trail without having to remove footwear.

Recently, the gates to the boardwalk were padlocked. It is now a white elephant. Will the authority consider restoring the submerged boardwalk to its original purpose or coming up with new plans to justify the cost?

Submerged boardwalk has been reopened
Letter from Tan Nguan Sen Director, Catchment & Waterways, PUB
Today Online 20 Jan 12;

PUB, the national water agency, thanks Mr Chin Kee Thou for his letter "Submerged boardwalk now white elephant" (Jan 18). The boardwalk (picture) is one of the features under the Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters programme at MacRitchie Reservoir.

As the water in the submerged boardwalk area is part of the reservoir, its level will fluctuate accordingly with the reservoir's water level. Hence, at times, the water level on the boardwalk may be low.

The boardwalk was closed at times between last month and early this month for minor rectification works. These have since been completed, and the boardwalk is now open to the public.

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