They are the modern-day "desert" lands of Singapore. Miles and miles of lifeless back alleys behind shophouses crammed with unsightly air-conditioning units which can ramp up the temperature to 50 deg C.
But these lanes - a familiar sight in places like Duxton, Rochor and Jalan Besar - could come alive with alfresco dining and tree-lined walking paths if an ambitious idea to remove these units is adopted by the authorities.
The Future Cities Laboratory (FCL) - a research centre jointly established by the National Research Foundation and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology - is proposing integrating multiple air-con condensing units into single units on top of shophouse rooftops.
This would eliminate the hot and noisy split units from alleys, freeing them up for uses other than goods delivery access.
The FCL team behind the Rochor project: (from left) doctoral researchers Marcel Bruelisauer, 31, and Pieter J. Fourie, 39; postdoctoral researcher Iris Belle, 38; and senior researcher Edda Ostertag, 37. They propose integrating multiple air-con units into single units on top of shophouse rooftops. -- ST PHOTO: JAMIE KOH
But these lanes - a familiar sight in places like Duxton, Rochor and Jalan Besar - could come alive with alfresco dining and tree-lined walking paths if an ambitious idea to remove these units is adopted by the authorities.
The Future Cities Laboratory (FCL) - a research centre jointly established by the National Research Foundation and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology - is proposing integrating multiple air-con condensing units into single units on top of shophouse rooftops.
This would eliminate the hot and noisy split units from alleys, freeing them up for uses other than goods delivery access.

The FCL team behind the Rochor project: (from left) doctoral researchers Marcel Bruelisauer, 31, and Pieter J. Fourie, 39; postdoctoral researcher Iris Belle, 38; and senior researcher Edda Ostertag, 37. They propose integrating multiple air-con units into single units on top of shophouse rooftops. -- ST PHOTO: JAMIE KOH