Traffic Police is looking into the cause of an oil spillage that occurred early Thursday morning along Paterson Road, police said in a statement.
A stretch of Paterson Road outside ION Orchard, towards River Valley Road is now closed to all motorists except authorised vehicles. Paterson Road towards Scotts Road have been converted into two-way traffic to ease traffic congestion. An earlier statement from the police said the stretch of road has been closed since about 3.50am.
The affected stretch of road is currently being resurfaced and Traffic Police officers have been deployed to manage the traffic situation. Road users are advised to avoid the following roads leading to Paterson Road: Scotts, Orchard and Tanglin roads. Traffic delays are expected on these roads.
At about 10am, workers were seen repaving the affected stretch of road. Bus services 5, 105 and 132 which normally pass through Paterson Road are also being diverted to use Orchard Road, Orchard Boulevard before continuing on to Grange Road.
An office worker who works at Shaw Centre told The Straits Times that the road closure has also caused a jam from Novena towards town.
“I left home at 8.35am and took bus 54, which usually takes 30 minutes to reach Far East. Today, it took an hour,” she said.
To facilitate road recovery works for an oil spillage, all five lanes at Paterson Road between the junction of Orchard Road and Orchard Boulevard, towards Paterson Hill are closed temporarily as this slippery stretch was not safe for use, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said in a statement. Public are advised to avoid these roads.
The lanes will be opened to motorists progressively, LTA said. All five lanes are expected to be opened to motorists by 5pm. LTA enforcement officers and engineers are on-site to help to expedite recovery works and traffic diversion.
Motorists who have any queries can contact the LTA hotline at 1800-CALL LTA. The public may also call the Traffic Police Information Hotline at 65470000 or stay tuned to radio and television broadcast for the latest updates concerning the road closure.
Source: www.straitstimes.com
