The Tuas viaduct, a 4.8-km stretch linking Tuas South Avenue 3 to Tuas Road, will open on Feb 18 at 6am. Peak period congestion in Tuas is expected to ease with the opening of this new viaduct serving the western industrial area.

Built at a budget of S$3.5 billion over five years, the viaduct is the first in Singapore to integrate road and rail, and is aimed at enhancing transport connectivity to businesses in Tuas.

The viaduct, Singapore's first "twin-tier road-rail integrated viaduct", will provide a faster route to Tuas South by allowing motorists to bypass the busy Pioneer Road. The stretch forms part of a 7.5-km rail viaduct linking the MRT stations of Tuas Link, Tuas West Road, Tuas Crescent and Gul Circle – slated to open in the second quarter of this year – with Joo Koon station on the East-West Line. Once opened, commuters to the Tuas area can save up to 35 minutes in travelling time, LTA said.

From Tuas West Road station to the area around Tuas Road, the rail viaduct runs directly above the road viaduct. The road viaduct in turn runs two lanes in each direction above the busy Pioneer Road over a 2.4-km stretch, with capacity for conversion to three lanes depending on future traffic needs. The new viaduct will help reduce congestion, and drive further investment in the area and we can expect more factories to shift to Tuas with the completion of the stretch.

The completed viaduct, part of the Tuas West Extension project, provides better transport connections for the future Tuas Port, and other upcoming industrial developments within the area.

Motorists using the viaduct can by-pass up to six traffic junctions at Pioneer Road. Motorists can enter the viaduct via two up-ramps at Tuas South Ave 3 and Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim. There will be three down-ramps along the viaduct.

The Tuas West Extension will improve the MRT connectivity that is currently lacking in the Tuas area. Its 4 stations link up the Jurong and Tuas industrial areas:

1. Gul Circle
2. Tuas Crescent
3. Tuas West Road
4. Tuas Link
   

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A residential with first storey commercial site at Perumal Road in Litte India attracted strong interest from developers, with 11 bids submitted at the close of its public tender on Tuesday (10 Jan 2017), announced by Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). The site is near the Farrer Park MRT station and commercial amenities such as City Square Mall and Mustafa Centre.

Out of the eleven bids received for the site at Perumal Road, near Farrer Park MRT station, Low Keng Huat Ltd put in the top bid of $174.08 million ($1,000.71 psf per plot ratio) which was 4.4% higher than the next highest bid of $958.28 psf per plot ratio from China Construction (South Pacific) Development. Allgreen Properties came in third with a bid of $161.5 million ($928.4 psf per plot ratio).

It is interesting to note that 9 out of the 11 bidders bid higher than the top bid for the nearby site (Sturdee Residences) in March 2015. Even the winner of the Sturdee Residences came in at 8.25% higher than the bid placed two years ago (SL Capital bid $786.92psf ppr in March 2015 compared to $851.88psf ppr in the tender closing today)

This clearly indicates that the shortage of residential land sites is being keenly felt by developers, going by the tender results of the first GLS land tender for the year. Developers are clearly looking to replenish their depleting inventory and the Perumal plot offers the added bonus of a small size and therefore an affordable quantum of $174 million.

The site benefits from its proximity to transport nodes – the Dhoby Ghaut Interchange is only two stops away. Other amenities nearby include the relatively new One Farrer Hotel,  Farrer Park Medical Hospital and City Square Mall.

The parcel at Perumal Road is zoned for residential with commercial on the first storey. It had been launched for sale under the Confirmed List in November 2016 under the 2H2016 Government Land Sales Programme.

"The private residential market is showing signs of stabilising and may very possibly recover by 2018. This would coincide well with the launch of the Perumal project," said Mr Wong Xian Yang, head of research and consultancy at OrangeTee.

Analysts put the potential average selling price for units at above $1,700 psf, based on the high land price submitted.

Finally, it seemed the blockbuster $638 million sale of Shunfu Ville sealed in May 2016 may eventually go through as planned. The largest enbloc deal since 2007 - property developer Qingjian Realty on the 4th Jan 2017 obtained High Court approval for the collective purchase of Shunfu Ville estate.

The Straits Times reported that two owners who had objected to the sale were at the High Court yesterday, but were not represented by lawyers. No written judgment was issued, but the objecting owners have 30 days to file an appeal.

Each flat owner stood to pocket an average of $1.782 million, after they had agreed to lower the reserve price from $688 million to $638 million. But Qingjian faced a hiccup in October 2016, when five owners objected to the sale. This meant that the deal needed High Court approval. Owners can object on grounds such as financial loss, even after the sale committee gets the requisite percentage of owners' approval.

The Straits Times understands that three of the objecting parties eventually withdrew their objections. It is not clear why the two remaining owners are objecting.

Qingjian Realty (South Pacific) Group, which had hoped to build a project of 30 to 36 storeys, has been told by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) to stick to a 21- to 23-storey limit.

Qingjian managing director Li Jun told The Straits Times the company was "very happy" to have obtained the High Court's approval and while the company would wait 30 days, in case of appeal, it was examining plans and designs for the estate.