Bedok North is a residential area in eastern Singapore.
It’s home to hawker centres, coffee shops, grocery stores, and places for its residents to unwind and relax.
Just like any other neighbourhood, it used to have 50km/h streets. This changed a few years ago with the Silver Zone scheme. Targeted at making streets safer for elders, traffic calming measures such as roundabouts, chicanes, and crossings were added to allow residents to get around their neighbourhood with a peace of mind.
The construction of a Silver Zone in Bedok North also came with a 40km/h speed limit. This allows everyone to have more time to react before a crash occurs, and minimises the risk of injury or death should it occur.
But little did I expect to see construction in that area this year. Like the Silver Zones in Bukit Merah View, turns out its streets are upgraded for safety. If you’d like to see a drive through of the silver zone in 2023, head to 4:49 of the video.
What has changed?
While the Silver Zone has already helped to slow vehicular traffic, more traffic calming features were added or amended.
New Lane Narrowing Markings
Along the straight stretch of Bedok North Street 3, triangle markings were added to visually narrow the lane.
Bedok North Avenue 2 has also received some markings. Turns out the kerbless crossing which has narrowed a 2 lane road to 1 lane can be narrowed even more!
New Kerbless Crossing
A kerbless crossing was added in the middle of Bedok North Street 3 to allow people with mobility needs to access the coffeeshop opposite their homes.
Raised Junction
And a raised junction which I filmed in Toa Payoh, is also being introduced at the intersection of Bedok North Avenue 2 and Bedok North Street 3. This raises the road to footpath level, allowing pedestrians to cross without bumps, and forces drivers to pay attention at the intersection.
New Pedestrian Crossing Position
The raised zebra crossing at the roundabout of Bedok North Avenue 1 and Bedok North Street 3 was pushed back. Previously, drivers waiting for a space in the roundabout would block the zebra crossing as there was insufficient space.
This change will allow pedestrians to cross the street uninterrupted by vehicles. And it also makes driving less stressful, as it makes it possible to yield to pedestrians followed by other traffic, one mode at a time.
The most significant change in this upgrade is a new 30km/h speed limit, which takes effect at the end of June. Lower travel speeds in residential streets improve safety for all, and reduce noise pollution caused by motor traffic.
Suggestions
A few ideas I have to improve the silver zone are pedestrian crossings on all legs of the roundabout, to minimise walking distances, especially for seniors.
Crossings can also be added at the raised junction. Since drivers already slow down and yield to motor vehicles at the raised crossing, yielding to crossing pedestrians should be made the norm too.
The kerbless crossing at Bedok North Street 3 can have pedestrian priority too, since drivers have to slow down for the hump anyway.
The new Silver Zone upgrades in the estate of Bedok North are a welcome change, hopefully they can help to improve the convenience and safety for everyone.
tehsiewdai 
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