More commonly known as an industrial estate near Jurong and in the West of Singapore, Tuas is an area where not everyone has been to before or maybe just a few times before.
In recent years, new plans and progress about the future of Tuas and its transformation to be the largest fully automated terminal in the world have also made Tuas a talking point in Singapore today.
In this article, we will share with you some interesting facts about Tuas which will help you to better appreciate Tuas.
‘Secret Beach’ in Tuas
By doing some online research, you will probably be able to find this so called ‘Secret Beach’. It is sometimes also called the ‘Tuas lalang field’ according to online reports.
Driving past the area, what you will probably find is a wide and open lalang or in simpler terms course weedy grass field, sand and water although it may not have the cleanest waters you can find.
Not many have noticed the area and it is said to have been discovered by a report years ago back in year 2007. Since it is unknown and unofficial, it doesn’t have an official name.
According to online sources, the area has signs put up which say state land and that trespassing is not allowed so do take note on this point.
What does the word ‘Tuas’ Mean
If you have always wondered what does the word Tuas really mean, here you go. The word Tuas is said to be derived from an olden daytime fishing method which is not commonly used nowadays.
What happens for this method of fishing is that fishermen would float coconut leaves and branches by keeping them close together on the waters. A large fishing net is then cast and suspended below the coconut leaves and branches. The shade provided by the leaves and branches above the fishing net would help to attract fishes. As more fishes are attracted into the net, the net will then be lifted and pulled up by the fishermen in their fishing boats and they will have their catch for the day.
The lifting up or pulling action of the fishing net was previously called menuas, which eventually became known as Tuas which is also a Malay word. If you read on further, the dots will connect as Tuas has a long history and used to be a fishing village.
History of Tuas & Land Reclamation
In the past, Tuas used to be a swampland in the West which was subsequently cleared to give way for squatter settlement. It was also a fishing village where it was a common sight to see hundreds of fishermen in their fishing boats each morning.
Later on, in the 1970s, residents of Tuas were resettled to public housing areas which is more commonly known today as Housing Development Board flats or HDB.
After residents were resettled, Tuas was later developed into an industrial area of the West. In the 1980s, as space was limited, land was reclaimed to cater for more industrial developments in Tuas.
By year 1988, around 6.5 kilometre square of land were reclaimed to form part of Tuas. Till today, land reclamation is still an ongoing activity in the West. Looking at the figures, the land size of Tuas increased from about 17 kilometre square in 1996 to about 30 kilometre square today. Imagine the time and resources invested to reclaim the land.
Incineration Plants
Incineration plants are sometimes also called waste to energy plants or WTE plants. In Tuas alone, there are also a number of incineration plants to convert waste to energy. They are located at Tuas Avenue 20 and Tuas South Avenue 3.
In simple terms, this is how the incineration process works. Heat is produced from burning or combustion and the heat generates steam in boilers. This steam generated in turn drives generators to produce electricity.
Even & Odd Streets
If you look closely at google maps or street directory, you will notice that the roads in Tuas are numbered in an orderly manner. In one direction, you will see Tuas Avenue 1, 3, 5 while in the direction perpendicular to it you will see Avenue 2, 4, 6.
By knowing and identifying the pattern, it may be easier for you to locate your destination when heading to Tuas next time.
Tuas Television World
Another interesting fact about Tuas, is that there used to be a Television (TV) World which is located close to the Tuas Second Link Checkpoint. While it used to look like a rather rundown theme park when viewed from the outside of the building, it was mainly used by the Television Corporation Of Singapore or TCS in the 1990s and was where our local dramas were being produced.
Today we no longer have TCS but we have Mediacorp which is located at One North where they have the Mediacorp Campus and the MES theatre.
Expect More to Come in the Near Future
With so many interesting and lesser known facts and history about Tuas, who would have predicted that Tuas would be what it is today. In fact, in the near future when the mega port is completed by year 2040, you can expect to see even more interesting activities as Singapore work towards having the largest fully automated terminal.