From top, left to right: Jurong West New Town, Jurong West Park, Jurong West Primary School, Jurong West Public Library, Jurong West Secondary School, Jurong West Town Centre.
Jurong West originated from the area once called Peng Kang,[6] named after the gambier plantations along Sungei Jurong.[7] By the mid-20th century, the area was home to several brickworks, palm oil plantations and nurseries.[8] At that time, the only public housing estates in Jurong West were Boon Lay and Taman Jurong.[9] Jurong West was largely left alone until 1984, when the HDB began conceptualisation for a new town in Jurong West.[10] Jurong West was carved into nine subzones that would house a total of 94,000 public and private housing units in the long term.[11][3]
The town's first apartment blocks (known locally as flats) were completed at Taman Jurong in 1963.[12][13] By November 2004, about 71,522 dwelling units were completed.[14] As of 31 March 2018, there are 74,301 HDB dwelling units in Jurong West.[15]
As of 2018, Jurong West has a population of 266,720, most of whom are part of the working population.[2] The most populous subzone is Yunnan with 68,840 residents, closely followed by Jurong West Central with 65,720 residents. Chin Bee, however, has just ten residents, while Safti is completely unpopulated.[2] Packed into an area of 9.87 km2 (3.81 sq mi), of which just 4.8 km2 (1.9 sq mi) are designated as residential areas, Jurong West has a population density of 27,000 people per km2 (70,000 per mi2).[1]
City planners plan for public transport to eventually become the preferred mode of transport. The government of Singapore uses public transport to reduce pollution caused by heavy road traffic.[25] Jurong West is part of the Urban Redevelopment Authority's focus for realising this urban planning model. As Jurong West is relatively distant from the city centre at the Central Area, an efficient, high-volume and high-speed public transport system is also preferred to using road networks, as the government is aiming to reduce the number of cars on the road.[26]
Jurong West Town is linked to the rest of Singapore through the East West Line (EWL) at Boon Lay MRT station, located at the Town Centre. The EWL is a heavy rail mass rapid transit system, and connects to other systems in the MRT network. It is operated by SMRT.
The Boon Lay MRT Station is located next to Boon Lay Bus Interchange for commuters' ease of switching across different modes of public transport. The MRT station began operations on 6 July 1990,[27] as the western terminus of the East West Line, before additional stations were added further west of the line at Pioneer and Joo Koon on 28 February 2009.[28]
Lakeside (EW26), another station along the EWL in Jurong West Town, serves the housing developments in Taman Jurong, Hong Kah and Boon Lay. The station began operations on 5 November 1988.
Pioneer (EW28) is the newest EWL station to open in Jurong West, on 28 February 2009.[29] The station improves accessibility to residential areas of Nanyang and Pioneer, as well as the industrial areas located south of the station.[30]
The inter-town Jurong Region Line (JRL) system is a 24 km mass rapid transit line that will connect residents to the town centre, as well as other areas such as Tengah, Choa Chu Kang and Jurong East. The MRT line will have 24 stations and all will be elevated. The line will open from 2026 onwards.
The Boon Lay Bus Interchange was originally opened in July 1990 along with Boon Lay MRT station.[31] At that time, developments around the area in Jurong West New Town were still actively in progress. It was later rebuilt[32] and reopened in 2009[33] at the ground level of Jurong Point Shopping Centre, next to Centris condominium, and is the fourth air-conditioned bus interchange in Singapore, after Toa Payoh Bus Interchange, Sengkang Bus Interchange and Ang Mo Kio Bus Interchange.These bus services from this interchange would be mostly operated by SMRT Buses from September 2024 onwards after being operated by SBS Transit for many years with the incumbent operations under the Jurong West Bus Package.
There are four major building complexes within the Jurong West Town Centre.
Jurong Point Shopping Centre
Jurong Point Shopping Centre is Singapore's largest suburban shopping centre.[34] The shopping centre started operations in December 1995[35] and expanded twice in 1999[36] and 2008.[37]
The Centris
The Centris is a private condominium that is located above Jurong Point Shopping Centre.[38]
Jurong West Community Building
The Jurong West Community Building is an integrated development comprising the Jurong West Public Library, The Frontier Community Club and Jurong Medical Centre.[39] It is located behind Jurong Point Shopping Centre.
Jurong Fire Station, which opened on 17 November 2017, is the first fire station in Singapore to have a slide.[44] The fire station covers 4,000 square metres,[45] and is used by the Singapore Civil Defence Force.
Medical facilities
Pioneer Polyclinic is a government healthcare institution serving the local community in Jurong West.[46] The polyclinic was opened in January 2018.[47] Also located in Jurong West is the Jurong Medical Centre, which complements the acute and step-down care services of Ng Teng Fong General Hospital and Jurong Community Hospital.[48]
Sports facilities
Jurong West Sports Centre,[49] formerly known as Jurong West Sports and Recreation Centre,[50] is the largest sports centre in Singapore,[51] and offers one of the two sheltered pools managed by Sport Singapore.
^National Library Board (20 June 2016). "Boon Lay | Infopedia". Archived from the original on 20 December 2018. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
^Housing and Development Board (4 October 2017). "Jurong West | HDB InfoWEB". Archived from the original on 22 December 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2018.