SINGAPORE – A portion of Merchant Road near Riverside Point and Magazine Road will soon be converted for pedestrian use to create a continuous walking route between Fort Canning Park and Pearl’s Hill City Park.
The pedestrianisation will be carried out by property firm City Developments Limited (CDL) as part of its ongoing redevelopment of the former Central Mall and Central Square.
Both these developments were demolished earlier in 2024. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has given CDL the go-ahead to build Union Square at the site – a mixed-use development with offices, shops and homes that will sit between Merchant and Havelock roads.
Union Square, which will also have two conservation buildings and a new three-storey hotel block, is set to be completed in 2029.
A URA spokesperson said the partial pedestrianisation of Merchant Road is one of the key features of Union Square that will benefit the public.
Plans for the pedestrianisation works were raised as a possibility by URA in as early as 2019, when the agency unveiled its Draft Master Plan, and were confirmed in a recent exhibition of the agency’s upcoming Recreation Master Plan.
The URA Master Plan is a statutory document that guides Singapore’s development for the next 10 to 15 years, with the next updated edition due to be exhibited in 2025.
Merchant Road to be partially pedestrianised to link Fort Canning and Pearl’s Hill
