NodeAccess

Singapore's transit network is one of the best in the world, but "close by" on a map isn't the same as easy to reach. For a senior with a walking frame, a wheelchair user or a parent pushing a pram, a polyclinic 800m away can mean a slow walk, an overhead bridge, a transfer and a crowded bus with no seat.

Singapore became a super-aged society in 2026. Census 2020 counted 97,600 residents with a lot of difficulty in at least one basic activity, with mobility the largest group. LTMP 2040 promises "20-minute towns", yet I couldn't find a public tool that checks that promise for the people who need it most. NodeAccess is my attempt to build one.

What it does

NodeAccess computes an Essential Services Accessibility Index for every planning area in Singapore. It measures real door-to-door transit time, not straight-line distance, to four essential services: polyclinics, Active Ageing Centres, hawker centres and childcare centres.

The index is calculated for four traveller profiles, each with its own walking speed, walking limit and destinations:

• Seniors
• Mobility-aid users
• Parents with young children
• Low-income, transit-dependent residents

For planners at URA and implementing agencies (MOH/AIC, ECDA, NEA, LTA), it:

• Flags planning areas that miss the LTMP 2040 20-minute target
• Ranks the top 10 areas with the most people with accessibility needs and the worst access
• Accounts for capacity using E2SFCA, so an overloaded facility doesn't count as good access
• Simulates new facilities before they're built, starting with the polyclinics MOH plans to open by 2027
• Answers plain-English questions through a Genie space, e.g. "Which planning areas miss 20 minutes to a polyclinic for wheelchair users?"

The method borrows from established practice: Transport for London's PTAL and ATOS measures, the UK Department for Transport's Journey Time Statistics, and published E2SFCA studies of healthcare access, including one on CHAS GP access for Singapore seniors in HDB flats.

Built With

• data.gov.sg
• databricks
• delta-lake
• genie
• geopandas
• h3
• lakeflow
• lta-datamall
• mlflow
• onemap-api
• python
• singstat
• sql
• unity-catalog