SINGAPORE – A back-lane shortcut in Robey Crescent has been sealed off with a metal gate, forcing residents who have used it for more than a decade to use a longer route along a canal to reach the main road.
The narrow concrete strip measuring about 25m long runs behind a row of terrace houses between Robey Crescent and Jalan Arif, linking the private estate in Kovan to a bus stop along Hougang Avenue 2 and amenities located at the HDB blocks opposite.
The path is a popular route used by grandparents walking their grandchildren to school, residents heading to work and domestic helpers going to the nearby supermarket.
Residents first noticed the gate with a notice that said “private property” on Oct 28. Wire mesh was also put up at the other end of the lane.
A land-title search showed the strip belongs to Island Chartered, a real estate developer.
One resident, who wanted to be known only as May, said: “My children were still able to access the lane when they went to school that morning. But when my son returned at around 5pm, he noticed the gate was up and he sent me a photo.”
Another resident, who wanted to be known as only Mr Au, 68, said he would take the path when he walked his nine-year-old grandson to Xinmin Primary School on weekdays. “At first we thought it was temporary, maybe to facilitate renovation at one of the houses. Then we realised it wasn’t coming down and we now have to go a long way round it,” said Mr Au.
Another elderly resident in her 80s said the closure has made her routine walk difficult.
Instead of a direct, flat path, residents now have to walk along a canal, climb a flight of steps and cover an additional 50m or so to reach the same bus stop.
“The steps beside the canal are steep and sometimes slippery. My legs are weak and I stopped going for my walks,” the elderly resident said in Hokkien.
May said her children would sometimes climb over the railings next to the gate to continue using the shortcut. She acknowledged that it was unsafe to do so.
If they avoid the canal path, residents have to walk to the same bus stop via Poh Huat Road instead – a detour that is roughly six times longer than walking through the back lane.
