One last dance on the railway through the green corridor

We are now into the last weekend of the old railway through Singapore. The old railway with its locomotive hauled carriages will after the next week, be something that we can only reminisce about, having seen it pass through areas of Singapore that I have since my childhood days associated with the railway. There is something about trains that always fascinates a child, and it was indeed in my childhood that I developed a fascination with trains, having seen trains speed across the black bridges of Bukit Timah and the level crossings of the north and having heard the whistles and horns that I will always associate with the annual Lunar New Year reunion dinners at my aunt’s place in Spottiswoode Park. At least for me, the passing of the railway into history will be a bittersweet moment, having not just had many childhood experiences watching the trains go by, but also having been a regular user of the railway in the 1990s. It will be the knowledge that it will only be in the memories that I hold that I will see the trains once more, across a world that seemed far away from the changing landscape in the land of my birth that I have less and less of a connection with, that saddens me. That I guess is something that is inevitable about Singapore, a Singapore that abandons its recent past for the promise of an unattainable slice of Utopia.

The last dance of the railway through what many Singaporeans hope will be a future green corridor.

It is in the interest that is generated by passing of the old railway into history that I have also come to realise that Singapore that matters does hold what it is about to lose dear. Passing through the stations and the during recent walks along the line, there is an unmistakeable sense one feels of an air of sadness that goes beyond the passing of the trains or the pleasure of boarding one at the platform of a grand old station. There is also that sadness that comes from the loss of a world that Singapore has left behind that one could escape to at the station as well as in many parts of the railway corridor and the possible loss of distinctive landmarks that many have identified the areas around the corridor with. It through the shared experiences of the last days of the railway and the collective attempts by many individuals, interest groups and media organisations, that I have not just a wealth of positive experiences, but made a lot of wonderful friends, something that I will hold dear as much as I hold what has been a wonderful wealth of memories and experiences of the railway dear.

The last week of the railway has seen an upsurge in interest in it and has seen individuals, interest groups and media organisations scurrying to film, photograph and document its last days.

Many have taken an exploration through the green corridor and have become aware of the wonderful green spaces the railway has given us.

The green corridor is a breath of fresh air to a greying Singapore.

There is a wealth of flora and fauna in the green corridor - a pair of Scaly Breasted Munias dancing on the railway tracks near Blackmore Drive.

An Oriental Pied Hornbill seen flying over the green corridor.

And now, I will look forward to a final rail journey out of and back for that final homecoming into Tanjong Pagar this 30th of June, knowing that it is inevitable that the railway that Singapore has seen for close to 108 years will on the very next day be gone, and it is in knowing this that I will celebrate not with joy in my heart, but with a deep sense of appreciation for the railway, the wonderful green spaces and most of all the people that made the railway that I will always hold dear. Thanks KTM for the memories … and hopefully for the wonderful green spaces that we can pass on to our future generations.

The 1st of July will see the railway land which by a 1918 Ordinance transferred ownership of the land to the FMSR, the predecessor of the Malayan Railway, pass back into Singapore's hands, bringing to an end 108 years of the railway's association with Singapore.

The dismantling of the railway infrastructure will begin shortly after the 1st of July, but what advocates of the green corridor hope is that much (if not all) of the green spaces the corridor has given us will be retained for recreational use.

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Posts on the Railway through Singapore and on the Green Corridor:

Information related to the station and its architecture can be found on a previous post: “A final look at Tanjong Pagar Station“. In addition to that, I have also put together a collection of experiences and memories of the railway in Singapore and of my journeys through the grand old station which can be found through this page: “Journeys through Tanjong Pagar“.

Do also take a look at the proposal by the Nature Society (Singapore) to retain the green areas that have been preserved by the existence of the railway through Singapore and maintain it as a Green Corridor, at the Green Corridor’s website and show your support by liking the Green Corridor’s Facebook page. My own series of posts on the Green Corridor are at: “Support the Green Corridor“.

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A last dance with the railway through the Green Corridor on 26 Jun 2011:

Join the good people who support the Green Corridor and me on a walk through a road less travelled by the railway on the last Sunday of KTM’s operations through Singapore on “The Green Corridor walk along Upper Bukit Timah Road.“.

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