Large Crowds with No Social Distancing Gathered in Bukit Timah Rail Corridor on Day 1 of Long Weekend

By
Aveyn Toh
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How did you spend your Good Friday holiday?

For some, it may be Netflix and chill; for others, it may be to go shopping or food-hunting.

Though, for a surprisingly-large number of people, they decided to explore the great outdoors close to home – the recently-reopened, 4 km-long Rail Corridor which links Hillview to the Bukit Timah Railway Station.

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Funnily enough, the visitors were hoping to be able to enjoy the natural scenery and the view, but because of the huge number of people around, it probably turned into a people-watching event.

And this is just Day 1 of the long weekend.

Thronging the Rail Corridor for a bit of fresh air

After two long years of renovative work, the Rail Corridor, which is famed for its natural beauty and atmosphere, was finally reopened last week.

But because it’s the holidays, many people only had the free time to visit the place on Good Friday.

As noted by the National Parks Bureau on its website, safedistparks.nparks.gov.sg, foot traffic between the Truss Bridge and the Bukit Timah train station spiked to record highs after 8 am.

A reporter from LianHe WanBao (联合晚报) headed down to the field to conduct an interview with the visitors of the Rail Corridor yesterday morning.

She immediately noticed the large crowds there, with people walking shoulder to shoulder.

Many people seem to be oblivious to the crowd though and were engaged in experiencing what nature has to offer.

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There are some who are busy taking photographs; there are also a few who are enraptured with the antics of the monkeys that gambolled about in the trees.

Masses of people aside, it’s definitely a good day to be out and about.

Despite the renovation, the natural beauty of the corridor is retained

In an interview, Yishun resident, Chen Wenhao (陈文豪), and his brother’s families, totalling 11 people, mentioned that they visited the place to get some fresh air.

After months of being cooped up at home, it’s not surprising that the kids are particularly excited to be so close to nature.

He also commented that despite the renovation, the natural beauty of the corridor is retained.

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Unfortunately, like many people who were at the place at that time, he didn’t expect there would be crowds here.

In fact, upon further interviews with the people there, the reporter from LianHe WanBao realized that many of the visitors were first-timers who likely heard about the reopening and are eager to see the place for themselves.

And what perfect timing.

Social distancing is simply impossible

As seen in the pictures captured by the photographer from LianHe WanBao, social distancing is simply impossible at the Rail Corridor.

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This is especially true on the Truss bridge, which is a popular location for people to “check in” on their social media.

Besides foot-based visitors, there were plenty of cyclists too who stopped on the bridge, probably due to not being able to cycle safely among so many people.

But it’s also likely that they wanted to take a breather and enjoy the view for a bit.

We’re not sure whether the Rail Corridor will end up being closed again to prevent people from congregating there, but it’s likely that the authorities will want to step in and regulate the matter.

After all, with COVID-19 still out and about, an innocent outing could potentially be turned into a life-threatening illness for the people involved.

Stay safe everyone!

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Featured Image: Facebook (Lianhe Wanbao 联合晚报)

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Aveyn Toh
Email: [email protected]