Singapore: Wheelchair accessibility

John Moxon aboard the SMRT

We’ve decided to plan a holiday in Singapore – fly and stay – since it is impressively accessible.  The trains are wonderful and the stations are plentiful.  The downside of course is the weather.  Being right on the equator, it is hot and oppressively humid.  Despite that, we walked approximately 14 km, according to John’s wheelchair distance monitor.

Driverless train

The SMRT – the driverless underground train system – is wonderfully accessible, as you can see in these photos.  We didn’t try out the buses.  Many of the stations have huge underground shopping arcades and there are adequate lifts to reach these and street level.

We occasionally had to take a longer route to find the barrier-free access, including at street crossings.  At Orchard Road, pedestrians are encouraged to use the underpass – only accessible by escalator or stairs – so we had to walk an extra block to find a street crossing.

Easy access and egress - no ramp required

The Gardens by the Bay – a must see attraction – are also fully wheelchair accessible.  We wandered vast distances in this park and there is much to see.  There are boardwalks and lifts to all features where needed.

Photos of these coming.

We are yet to check out – on another holiday – the access to the many museums, old and new but are confident the Singaporeans have done their best.

Maybe some of our wheelie friend readers can comment?