Etymology

The origin of the name "Bedok" likely comes from the Malay word for "drum", a reference to the sound of drums heard in the area during traditional festivals and ceremonies.^[7] Its use was known as early as 1604 in Manuel Godinho de Erédia's map of Singapore. The map refers to the Bedok River (present-day Sungei Bedok) as Sune Bodo.

History

As part of the Tanah Merah region, Bedok's history is largely influenced by its coastal frontier. The general area known as Bedok today was first mentioned in maps dating to the pre-Raffles era. After Singapore was colonised by the British in 1819, Simpang Bedok Village became an ethnically mixed community consisting of Chinese and Malay peoples. Before the 1960s, Bedok's primary source of income was coconut, which was harvested from the plantations found in the Siglap subzone. Fishing was another primary source of income for the villagers of Simpang Bedok at the time.^[6][8]

The modern development of Bedok only began in 1966, when reclamation works along the coastal area began.^[8] In the following decade, Bedok was transformed by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) into the country's fifth self-contained new town, with the first residential flats emerging in the vicinity by 1975.^[9] Following the Fall of Saigon that same year, Bedok Jetty became a focal point for Vietnamese refugees landing in Singapore during Operation Thunderstorm.

Bedok Town had been developed since 1973, with the newer roads such as Bedok Plain, Bedok Highway, and Bedok Heights being built until 1975. The New Upper Changi Road was fully built and opened in 1979, where the massive development had been completed except Bedok Reservoir and Kaki Bukit, which was built later between 1983 and 1988.

Location

Bedok Planning Area is located within the East Region of Singapore, along Pulau Ujong's southeastern coast. 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.

Bedok New Town sits within the Bedok Planning Area.

Subzones

Bedok is divided into 8 subzones:

Residential development

Some 58,000 units of flats were 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 flats. It provides housing for some 200,000 residents.

Transportation

Bedok Reservoir MRT station

There are currently six Mass Rapid Transit stations in the Bedok planning area across two lines, the East West line and the Downtown line. Both lines run parallel to one another and do not have an interchange station in Bedok. However, the Tanah Merah MRT station of EWL is an interchange station with the Changi Airport branch line (CG). The six stations are:

• Tanah Merah
• Bedok
• Kembangan
• Kaki Bukit
• Bedok North
• Bedok Reservoir

The future stations of the Thomson-East Coast line that are currently under construction will be operational in 2024 and 2025 under stages 4 and 5, respectively. The line will run south of the planning area and have an interchange station with the Downtown line at Sungei Bedok station, which will also be the terminus for both lines. The five future stations are:

• Marine Terrace
• Siglap
• Bayshore
• Bedok South
• Sungei Bedok

The Bedok Bus Interchange opened in 1979, as part of the Bedok Town Centre, located along Bedok North Road and between Block 203 and 207, next to community amenities such as a food centre, library, and sports complex, with the allocated Block 207A. There were thirty-three end-on berths with ten services occupying it and six sawtooth berths, each occupying three bus services in the original facility. Several bus services were moved to the interchange from Chai Chee Bus Terminal when it closed in 1985.^[10] Bedok MRT station opened in 1989 at the south of the original facility, complementing the bus interchange to serve people travelling within Bedok town and also the nearby East Coast Park.

On 19 November 2011, after operating from the original facility for 32 years, the bus interchange moved to its temporary facility west of the original facility, at the junction of Bedok North Drive and Bedok North Avenue 1, to allow the original facility to be redeveloped into Bedok Mall.

The new Bedok Integrated Transport Hub (ITH) began operations on 30 November 2014.^[11][12] It is the 7th air-conditioned bus interchange in Singapore.^[11]

Parks

Path at Bedok Reservoir

The parks in the area include Bedok Town Park, located beside the Pan Island Expressway between Bedok North Road and Bedok Avenue 3,^[13] and the 41.7 hectares (103 acres) Bedok Reservoir Park alongside Bedok Reservoir.^[14]

Bedok Town Park park has been designated with the code 9V-0005 by the international Parks On The Air award program, and so is regularly 'activated' by Amateur Radio operators using portable equipment.

Primary schools

• Bedok Green Primary School
• Damai Primary School
• Fengshan Primary School
• Opera Estate Primary School
• Red Swastika School
• St. Anthony's Canossian Primary School
• St. Stephen's School
• Tanjong Katong Primary School
• Telok Kurau Primary School
• Temasek Primary School
• Yu Neng Primary School

Secondary schools

• Anglican High School
• Bedok Green Secondary School
• Bedok South Secondary School
• Bedok View Secondary School
• Damai Secondary School
• Ping Yi Secondary School
• St. Anthony's Canossian Secondary School
• Temasek Secondary School

Junior colleges

• Temasek Junior College

Other schools

• Katong School (APSN)
• NPS International School