Integrating land use and transport planning to reduce work-related travel:: a case study of Tampines Regional Centre in Singapore

Singapore has been successful in alleviating severe traffic congestion due to its comprehensive and highly coordinated land transport policy, which combines integrated land use and transport planning, and demand management measures. Many studies have been carried out on its demand management instruments but not much is known about the integration of land use and transport planning. Tampines Regional Centre provides a good case study to illustrate this aspect. This paper assesses whether the regional centre has been successful as an alternative employment centre to the CBD and has helped to reduce work-travel. Findings from surveys on the employment and work-travel patterns of residents in the East Region, and employees and employers in Tampines Regional Centre provide some empirical evidence to show that there is great potential in reducing work-travel and reliance on the car so as to alleviate traffic congestion by decentralising commercial activities from the CBD of Singapore to the regional centres.