Every morning, I leave the house around 7am,
so that I can reach the office before 8am.
My house is very near to the Rail Corridor,
which connects me to Tanjong Pagar
and to my office, which I can cycle to very easily.
This morning, I will meet JK (Jok Kwang)
from Discovery Cycle SG for some coffee.
I started cycling at the age of six.
If you wanted to visit the neighbours
or you’d want to go and play.
So as a mode of transport, cycling was definitely a must.
When I started working,
it was about 20km to reach my work place.
That's how I continued my journey as a (bicycle) commuter.
I lived on an island – Pulau Bukom –
when I was four or five years old.
It was necessary, because if I didn’t know how to cycle,
I didn’t get to go to school.
And over and above that, the bicycle was there to help
my family’s business of food delivery.
Typically, at a young age,
you decide to do something different.
And I started to plan
and look forward to a one-year backpacking trip.
That was until I met some cyclists.
So I picked up a bicycle in the southern part of China
and then I cycled through Vietnam,
Cambodia,
Thailand,
Malaysia and then down to Singapore.
And that was when I arrived in 1984.
As a commuter, of course you always
try keep to a time schedule,
so that you are on-time for work.
But I think the beautiful part about this corridor
is the lush greenery.
The road is well paved.
It’s very fast, to go down that road,
and you can get mentally prepared
to get started at work.
So it's really a nice transition
and also very relaxing.
Let’s go!
This morning, Jok Kwang will accompany me
for part of my journey.
So, road safety is not a problem,
because it’s all spread out.
But if you use the Green Corridor
...it’s paradise.
So, in terms of connectivity,
I think the main PCNs (Park Connector Networks) are already there,
there are different feeds coming from the east,
north-east,
the north,
west into the CBD (Central Business District),
The connectivity continues to improve
because you not only have PCN, you have cycling paths,
you have the concept of shared paths,
and then pedestrian only paths.
So all these add to the connectivity
because the bicycle, the humble bicycle, is allowed to go on
many different surfaces.
We are going now separate ways,
so that I can continue my journey.
The challenges are to properly maintain your bike.
Working brakes? Very essential.
Looking at the set up:
Of course, a folding bike
allows you to fold it down to transport it easily.
(In my bag) I have my towel
and I can alson bring my laptop.
Then I can easily lock it
and remove it, then make it a sling bag and go to work.
So my advice is that
if you intend to be a (bicycle) commuter,
scout your route first.
It doesn’t need to be the fastest route,
because safety is of the utmost concern.
All the way down to Tanjong Pagar,
the beautiful surroundings
give me peace of mind.
In terms of end-of-trip facilities,
ideally, there’s a shower and a changing room.
Other facilities that would be beneficial
would include a parking area
where you can lock your bike.
Looking at the future,
commuting (by bicycle) will be part of our life,
and there will be more people doing it.
I think the authorities have put in a lot of effort
and also more people are starting to realise that commuting (by bicycle)
to the office has a lot of benefits.
It’s about fitness
and you don’t need to join the crowd
in the MRT or in a traffic jam.
It’s the beauty of going at your own pace,
to reach your work place.