Row of shophouses next to Jalan Kayu, famous to food-hunters for its
roti prata.
Jalan Kayu is a name of a street situated within the Sengkang Planning Area in the North-East Region of Singapore, under the urban planning scheme of the Urban Redevelopment Authority. The area east of Jalan Kayu has been renamed as Fernvale to form the western part of Sengkang New Town.
[edit] Etymology and history
Jalan Kayu was built in 1928 when the first Royal Air Force base outside the United Kingdom was established in Singapore, in the northern part of the island.
Jalan Kayu means "wooden road" in Malay. One version for the road name's origin is that firewood used to be stacked on the roadside. Another version is that the muddy laterite roads leading to the rubber estates in the area were made passable due to logs of wood that used to cover the muddy roads, hence the term in Malay jalan kayu.
[edit] Highlights
The street itself is a relatively minor, one-lane road. However, it became prominent in Singapore for two reasons. First, it was the main access route to the large British-built military compound in Seletar as well as the neighbouring Seletar Airport. Second, a range of road-side eateries selling roti prata gradually earned a reputation among the people of Singapore as arguably amongst the best in Singapore, and the road name became a household name for good food in a laidback setting.
[edit] Getting there
Only services 86, 103 and 103M call at the Jalan Kayu Shophouses.The rest of the busses serve as a transferring point to other areas
[edit] References
- Victor R Savage, Brenda S A Yeoh (2003), Toponymics - A Study of Singapore Street Names, Eastern Universities Press, ISBN 981-210-205-1
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