Bedok
Bedok is a planning area and matured residential town located in the East Region of Singapore. It has a land area of about 21.69 km2, Bedok ranks the 7th, 1st & 7th in terms of size, population & density respectively. Bedok New Town is the fifth Housing and Development Board (HDB) new town; its development started in April 1973 and continued over some 15 years. The planning area, an urban planning zone under the Urban Redevelopment Authority, encompasses the Bedok New Town itself, the low-rise private residential areas along Upper East Coast Road, and in the districts of Kembangan, Siglap and Telok Kurau, and the high-rise private condominium developments in the eastern part of Marine Parade.
Bedok is located at the southeastern part of Singapore's east region and is made out of 8 subzones, namely, Bayshore, Bedok North, Bedok Reservoir, Bedok South, Frankel, Kaki Bukit, Kembangan and Siglap. It is bounded by Paya Lebar to the north, Hougang to the northwest, Tampines to the northeast and east, Geylang to the west and Marine Parade to the southwest.
Etymology and early history
"Bedok" seems to be a very old place name. In the 1604 Manuel Gomes de Erédia's map of Singapore, there is a reference to the Bedok River called sune bodo (Sungei Bedok).
Bedok is one of the early native place names in existence around the time of Sir Stamford Raffles. In the first comprehensive map of Singapore Island completed by Frankin and Jackson and reproduced in John Crawfurd's 1828 book, the place name appears on the south-east coast of the island as a river, Badok S. (Sungei Bedok), around the "small red cliff", a part of present-day Tanah Merah.
The Malay word bedoh refers to a type of slit drum made from a large hollowed log for calling people to a mosque for prayers or to sound the alarm in the days before loudspeakers. There was a prominent mosque in the 1950s at Jalan Bilal that still used the drum about five times a day. The "h" in the word bedoh was replaced with a "k", and, as with most Malay words that end with a "k", it is pronounced with an inaudible glottal stop.
A less popular version refers to an equally uncommon Malay term of biduk, a small fishing boat like the sampan, or more likely, a dugout canoe, as the east coast was dotted with many fishing villages.
Bedok New Town
Bedok New Town covers a land area close to 9.4 km² with some 42% occupied for residential use. It was formerly a hilly region and hence the focal point of orientation of the town is the special landscaped park and sports complex built on the higher ground of the town. The residential blocks as well as the industrial area are planned based on the neighbourhood concept.
Residential development
There are some 58,000 units of flats built by the HDB in Bedok New Town. As one of the older towns, the majority of the flats are 3-room or 4-room. There are also some 2,700 and 583 units of executive and Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDC) flats. It provides housing for some 200,000 residents.
Notable Structures
Education
- Bedok North Secondary School
- Bedok South Secondary School
- Bedok View Secondary School
- CHIJ (Katong) Primary School
- Damai Primary School
- Damai Secondary School
- East Coast Primary School
- Fengshan Primary School
- Opera Estate Primary School
- Ping Yi Secondary School
- St Anthony's Canossian Primary
- St Anthony's Canossian Secondary School
- St. Patrick's School
- Temasek Junior College
- Temasek Primary School
- Temasek Secondary School
- Victoria Junior College
- Victoria School
Transportation
- Bayshore MRT Station (Opening in 2023)
- Bedok Bus Interchange
- Bedok MRT Station
- Bedok North MRT Station
- Bedok Reservoir MRT Station
- Bedok South MRT Station (Opening in 2024)
- Kaki Bukit MRT Station
- Kembangan MRT Station
- Marine Terrace MRT Station (Opening in 2023)
- Siglap MRT Station (Opening in 2023)
- Sungei Bedok MRT Station (Opening in 2024)
- Tanah Merah MRT Station
- Upper East Coast Bus Terminal
- Bedok Community Centre
- Bedok Public Library
- Eunos Community Club
- Fengshan Community Club
- Kampong Chai Chee Community Club
- Kampong Kembangan Community Club
Shopping Centres / Malls
- Bedok Mall
- Bedok Point
Parks
- Bedok Town Park
- Bedok Reservoir Park
- East Coast Park
- Telok Kurau Park
Bus Interchanges/Terminals
Bedok Interchange
| Service | Destination | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Clementi | N/A | |
| ↺ Changi Airfreight Centre | ||
| Clementi | ||
| Bukit Merah | ||
| Pasir Ris | ||
| Bedok North Avenue 4 | ||
| Tampines Concourse | Looping point | |
| Toa Payoh | N/A | |
| Boon Lay | ||
| Pasir Panjang Road | Weekday AM Peak Express Service | |
| Buona Vista | N/A | |
| Kent Ridge | ||
| ↺ ALPS Ave | Alternate Operating Hours | |
| ↺ Tanah Merah Ferry Road | ||
| Tampines | N/A | |
| ↺ Merpati Road | ||
| Eunos | Looping point | |
| Jurong East | N/A | |
| Tampines | Looping point | |
| Sengkang | N/A | |
| Toa Payoh | ||
| Woodlands | ||
| Clementi | ||
| Jurong East | ||
| ↺ Chai Chee Drive | ||
| ↺ Bedok North Street 3 | Clockwise loop | |
| Counter clockwise loop | ||
| ↺ Bedok Reservoir Road | N/A | |
| ↺ Bedok South Road | ||
| ↺ Fort Road | Weekends & Public Holidays | |
| Yishun | N/A | |
| Alighting only | Weekdays AM Peak Express Service |
Upper East Coast Terminal
| Service | Destination | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Yio Chu Kang | N/A | |
| Ang Mo Kio | ||
| Punggol | ||
| Ang Mo Kio Depot | ||
| Tampines | ||
| Bishan | ||
| Sims Place | ||
| Jurong East | Express Service | |
| Yishun | Sundays & Public Holidays only |
Politics
| Incumbent | Role |
|---|---|
| North East CDC | |
| Desmond Choo | Mayor of North East CDC |
| South East CDC | |
| Maliki Osman | Mayor of South East CDC |
| Aljunied GRC | |
| Low Thia Kiang | Member of Parliament for Bedok Reservoir-Punggol |
| Muhamad Faisal Manap | Member of Parliament for Kaki Bukit |
| Pritam Singh | Member of Parliament for Eunos |
| East Coast GRC | |
| Lee Yi Shyan | Member of Parliament for Kampong Chai Chee |
| Lim Swee Say | Member of Parliament for Bedok |
| Maliki Osman | Member of Parliament for Siglap |
| Fengshan SMC | |
| Cheryl Chan | Member of Parliament for Fengshan |
| Marine Parade GRC | |
| Edwin Tong | Member of Parliament for Joo Chiat |
| Tan Chuan-Jin | Member of Parliament for Kembangan-Chai Chee |
References
- Victor R Savage, Brenda S A Yeoh (2003), Toponymics - A Study of Singapore Street Names, Eastern Universities Press, ISBN 981-210-205-1
Links
| Planning Areas | View • Talk • Edit | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Central | Bishan • Bukit Merah • Bukit Timah • Downtown Core1 • Geylang • Kallang • Marina East1 • Marina South1 • Marine Parade • Museum1 • Newton1 • Novena • Orchard1 • Outram1 • Queenstown • River Valley1 • Rochor1 • Singapore River1 • Southern Islands • Straits View1 • Tanglin • Toa Payoh | ||
| East | Bedok • Changi • Changi Bay • Pasir Ris • Paya Lebar • Tampines | ||
| North | Central Water Catchment • Lim Chu Kang • Mandai • Sembawang • Simpang • Sungei Kadut • Woodlands • Yishun | ||
| North-East | Ang Mo Kio • Hougang • North-Eastern Islands • Punggol • Seletar • Sengkang • Serangoon | ||
| West | Boon Lay • Bukit Batok • Bukit Panjang • Choa Chu Kang • Clementi • Jurong East • Jurong West • Pioneer • Tengah • Tuas • Western Islands • Western Water Catchment | ||
| 1: Located within the Central Area | |||