UNDERGROUND LAND USES : AN EXPLORATORY STUDY

Abstract

With the expected increase of population in land scarce Singapore, one option for development is to go underground. While Singapore continues to explore the different underground land uses, there is a limit to the underground lands that can be used. Therefore, this study aims to examine the perceptions of the public towards the 3 different types of underground land uses and the factors that are of importance to the respondents. A survey was done on 318 respondents to obtain the public’s responses on the aims of the study. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Independent Sample T-test and One-way ANOVA. The study found that the category of Play is the most acceptable underground land uses followed by Work and Live. The most important factor is safety and health while the respondents deem the factors physiological, psychological and cost as less important. The Cross-tabulation analysis unveiled that respondents of all ages and occupations placed similarly importance on all 3 categories of underground land uses (i.e. work, live and play) while the One-way ANOVA revealed that high level of security have impact on the category of Live and Play while availability of windows opening will have impact on the category of Work. The findings would help planners and developers to better allocate the underground space to achieve a more efficient and effective land uses and a better environment to live, work and play in.