January 06, 08:27 PM 
514 Chai Chee Lane 03-16, Singapore 469029 Singapore is starting work on a one-of-a-kind project on a scale that has not been seen before.
The ambitious rails-to-trails project aims to redevelop and revitalise a 24-km (15 miles) stretch of disused rail corridor into a multi-purpose linear park.
This former cross-country train line spans the entire nation of Singapore, from Malaysia’s border in the north to the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station in the south, cutting through terrain in Choa Chu Kang and Bukit Timah.
The former Keretapi Tanah Melayu railway line was built during the British colonial period. It was used to transport tin, rubber, and other resources from the Malay Peninsula to the Singapore port.
Singapore and Malaysia had initially agreed that the railway would remain under Malaysian control when both countries parted ways in 1965.
But due to an agreement reached in 2010, Singapore has regained control of the largely neglected corridor, where the railway fell out of use after operations at the Tanjong Pagar railway station ceased on July 1, 2011.
See Nin Tan, senior director at Singapore's Urban Redevelopment Authority, was reported to have said: "This freed up an unprecedented 24 kilometer-long stretch of land that threads through diverse landscapes and communities ... where close to 1 million residents live."
Winning bid titled "Lines of Life"
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has chosen Japanese architectural firm Nikken Sekkei's proposal to redevelop the rail corridor as the winning bid. The winning master plan was announced in November 2015.
Entitled "Lines of Life", the proposal was put together in collaboration with local landscape design firm Tierra Design, as well as with engineering and project management company Arup Singapore.
The rail corridor will be designed to have 122 access points along its entire length that are accessible within 400m, or a five-minute walk from the nearest housing estate or workplace.
Bukit Timah Railway Station - The Station Garden: The Station Garden provides spaces and amenities like a bicycle station, café, as well as spaces for larger events like the Green Corridor Run in a lush green environment.
It will also include 21 platforms with toilets and rest areas.
The new space will include bike and pedestrian paths that cover the whole distance.
Eight distinctively-themed stretches with 10 "activity" nodes along the way will allow users of the community space to stop and do yoga, rock climb, grow vegetables at an urban farm, or watch wildlife in a neighbouring rainforest.
Opposite Kranji MRT Station - The Northern Nexus: The multi-recreational centre provides facilities such as a bicycle station. It is the launch point for kayaking into the Mandai River and to start a day's activity or outing on the Rail Corridor.
The winning team is carrying out the preliminary design and feasibility study of an initial 4km stretch from the former Bukit Timah Railway Station to the Hillview area.
At the same time, the URA has opened the design up for public feedback from now until the end of March 2016.
Mayfair Park - The Community Cave: The viaduct will have a combination of relaxing and active facilities such as community decks for yoga and a climbing wall for the more adventurous.
The proposal also aims to keep the corridor’s existing lush landscape intact as much as possible, without degrading the environment.
Queensway Viaduct - The Passage of Light: The viaduct space features an attractive interactive lighting, seating, community deck and amenities and a firefly swale garden.
Buona Vista - The Cultural Valley: An urban, vibrant and dynamic plaza that can hold events e.g. outdoor movie screenings, mass exercise, catering to both the adjacent one-north Business Park community and surrounding Queenstown residents.
Fair-face brick drain - The Eco-Loop: The eco-loop brings users nearer to the heritage drain to appreciate and learn about the biodiversity in the ecologically-rich area.
Former Bukit Timah Fire Station - The Green Connector
Stagmont Ring - The Canal Village: A bustling community hub with a diversity of programmes and amenities for neighbouring residents including community farming plots, a children's playground, BBQ lawns and fishing ponds.
H/T: URA, The Straits Times, Inhabitat, Gizmodo, ArchDaily, Co.Exist, Quartz, Condé Nast Traveler
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