Toa Payoh is a district located in the Central Region of Singapore. Occupying a land area of approximately 8 sq km, it is one of the most populated public housing estates in Singapore and is the closest estate to the city. It houses some 150,000 residents to date and is one of the earliest satellite public housing estates in Singapore.
In the Hokkien dialect, Toa Payoh translates to "big swamp" (Toa means "big" and Payoh means "swamp"). It is the Chinese equivalent of Paya Lebar. To the older generation of Chinese here, Toa Payoh is known as Ang Xiang Shan or "burial hill" due to the prominent fixture of a cemetery located in the area.
The Toa Payoh Planning Area, an urban planning zone under the Urban Redevelopment Authority, encompasses the Toa Payoh New Town, Potong Pasir and the private housing estates in the Upper Aljunied area. The planning area is bounded by Braddell Road and Bartley Road to the north, Upper Paya Lebar Road to the east, MacPherson Road and Jalan Toa Payoh to the south and Thomson Road to the west. It covers a total of 845 ha in land area.
The Toa Payoh New Town, HDB's second satellite town after Queenstown, was built in 1968. The housing estate is self-contained and has a town center acting as a focal point for the shopping and entertainment needs of the residents. Industrial developments were also built within the town to provide residents with job opportunities close to home while schools were built within the neighborhoods.
The commercial development, HDB Hub, located at the Toa Payoh Town Center was completed in 2002. The Housing and Development Board relocated its headquarters from its premises at Bukit Merah to the HDB Hub on 10 June 2002. The building also accommodates Singapore's first fully air-conditioned Toa Payoh Bus Interchange and integrates it with the existing Toa Payoh MRT Station. Toa Payoh MRT Station (NS19) is an underground station of the Mass Rapid Transit's North South Line in Singapore.
The sporting facilities are based in the southern central part of Toa Payoh, which is located near the town center. It consists of 3500 seater Toa Payoh Stadium. There is also Toa Payoh Swimming Complex, where national swimmers train at the complex.
The Toa Payoh Community Library, located at 6, Toa Payoh Central, Singapore 319191 was opened on 7 February 1974. It was the second full-time branch library built by the National Library to decentralize its library services.
Toa Payoh Town Park was first developed in the seventies. The park is furnished with amenities such as open-concept restrooms, a large pavilion with a stage for organized activities, rustic-looking gazebos for the relaxation of visitors and brightly colored pathways for an enjoyable stroll or jog around the park. The park also features such as cascading pools at the edge of the pond, fountain pool around the observation tower, trellises with climbing plants, colorful landscapes throughout the park and festive lighting during national celebrations.
From Toa Payoh, getting to the bustling and trendy Orchard Road is a short drive or a MRT ride of 3 stops only. With its hawker centres, coffee shops, a community library, SAFRA, a landscaped park, two MRT station - Toa Payoh MRT Station (NS19) and Braddel MRT Station (N S18), Toa Payoh is proving to be an excellent place for both residents and visitors to experience local culture.
