Mr Pay Cheng Wun, 95, used to have to stop between floors to catch his breath while climbing the stairs. Going for his daily walks was a tiring chore. However, ever since the Lift Upgrading Project (LUP) was completed at his four-storey block in Toa Payoh Central, he has been going out more often.
His daughter, Ms Sarah Pay, 51, is equally enthusiastic. The direct lift access has not only made it more convenient for her sister and herself when they carry heavy items home, but also brought more visitors to their home. “Our elderly relatives now drop by more often,” she said.
In four years’ time, some 5,000 HDB blocks that were built before 1990 will have lifts on every floor, enhancing mobility and accessibility for the residents. The elderly, the very young and the disabled will benefit the most.
The Housing and Development Board (HDB)’s LUP was introduced in 2001 as a central feature in HDB'supgrading efforts to improve the standard of older estates to be on par with the newer ones. With more than 35 percent of eligible blocks already benefiting from LUP, HDB is well on track in its aim to bring lifts to every doorstep by 2014.
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For the added convenience, each household only has to pay a maximum amount of $3,000 while the rest is subsidised by the Government, which pays between 75 percent and 90 percent of the total cost of lift upgrading.
Seeing how residents staying in blocks where LUP has been completed are happily enjoying the increased convenience, those living in blocks that have not undergone the upgrading are waiting eagerly for their turn.
Madam Lydia Lee, 62, who lives on the seventh floor of her segmented block in Telok Blangah, is one such resident.
“I voted ‘Yes’ to LUP as I am not getting any younger, and walking up and down flights of stairs is taking a toll on my body,” she said.
With Singapore facing an ageing national population, these new lifts will no doubt be a practical and useful feature when completed.
