It is hard to imagine that the entire population of Singapore is larger than British Columbia, yet has a smaller landmass than New York City. The overcrowding in Singapore is a ever growing concern for society and the government; the solution, to build an underground city. Singapore is known for building a lot of the shopping malls underground like “ION Orchard.”

According to New York Times, in a recent blog post, Khaw Boon Wan, Singapore’s minister for national development, pointed to extensive pedestrian passageways and shopping malls in Japan and Canada. He cited the possibilities in Singapore “of creating underground transport hubs, pedestrian links, cycling lanes, utility plants, storage and research facilities, industrial uses, shopping areas and other public spaces here.”

Economically, this would be ideal for Singapore since land expansion is not possible. From a business management prospective, this would be a costly high-risk project. The risks are unknown and there is not enough research done to see the psychological effects of humans being without daylight for a numerous period of time. There is no doubt that sustaining life underground is possible, but it would take a lot of marketing to convince the citizens to migrate underground.

Over the summer, I had the pleasure to spend a few days in Singapore to visit my family. Despite the MRT system being sufficiently better than Translink, I rather be outside enjoying the scenery, than be in a crowded and stuffy MRT subway station.

In the short run, this project may not be appealing, but in the long run, I believe that it will become a sustainable way of living. Humans will learn to adapt to their surroundings.

http://www.sunscreen.com.sg/backgrounds/Aerial_View_of_Singapore.jpg
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/26/business/international/crowded-singapore-looks-below-for-room-to-grow.html?ref=business&_r=0