As a smart nation, we strive to improve our lives with technology. One classic example is transportation. On average, public bus and rail trips serve five million passengers a day. That’s a lot of people to move each day.
And we know that transportation technology impacts the price of property. A general rule, properties near major transportation lines, like an MRT station, enjoy a price premium over those properties further away.
In the old days, transportation didn’t impact property prices.
Introduced to Singapore in 1880, originated in Japan - RICKSHAW is a means of “man-powered carriage”. It was an affordable and convenient means of getting around, BUT it certainly didn’t drive up property prices.
In the 1920s, the British colonial government gradually abolished rickshaws with motor traffic And Trishaws replaced rickshaws. From the mid 1950s, even trishaws began to disappear with further government regulations. *A trishaw is a bicycle with a sidecar, powered entirely by the cyclist. They were replaced by modern forms of transport, including taxis.
Again, though, taxis didn’t add premiums to property prices.
The Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) was a new technology that had revolutionised the transportation landscape in 1987. It also marked the beginning of the MRT premium for nearby properties.
One of the upcoming stationd on the Downtown Line is the Fort Canning Station. Properties that are within 1 kilometre from Fort Canning Station are able to command a price of $1,687 psf. 
For property prices nearby MRT stations, check out srx.com.sg/mrt-home-prices
To learn more about how transportation technology affects property prices, watch the XTV video.