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Orchard Road is a Road in Singapore that is the Retail and Entertainment hub of the City-state . It is regularly frequented by the local population as well as being a major Tourist Attraction . Often the surrounding area is known as ''Orchard'' and associated with the road. The immediate vicinity of Orchard Road, Orchard Planning Area is one of 55 Urban Planning Areas as specified by the Urban Redevelopment Authority , and is a Commercial district. It is part of the Central Region , and Singapore's Central Business District , the Central Area . During the National Day Rally Speech 2005, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that he would create more landmark buildings to create more fun in the district. The aim is partly to keep up with other neighbouring cities such as Hong Kong and Shanghai . GEOGRAPHY Orchard Road is a one-way street. It starts just before its intersection with Scotts Road , which is the location of the Orchard MRT Station . It then stretches southeast past Bideford Road, Somerset MRT Station , Central Expressway , Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station , and ends at the intersection with Handy Road (just before Prinsep Road), where it becomes Bras Basah Road . It has an extensive Underground infrastructure, including underground pedestrian walkways between the malls running underneath the street and also other streets in the vicinity. HISTORY Orchard Road got its name from the Nutmeg , Pepper and Fruit Orchard s that used to lie on either side of the street in the 1800s . Commercial development only began in the twentieth century, and took off in the 1970s . Orchard Road was already cut in the 1830s , though the new road was not named in George Coleman 's 1836 ''Map of Singapore''. In the 1830s the Orchard Road area was the scene of Gambier and Pepper plantations. Later, Nutmeg plantations and Fruit Orchard s predominated, hence its name. By 1846 , the spread of houses had reached up to Tank Road. There were none on the left side and only three or four houses went past Tank Road on the right side of Orchard Road. One major sight during this period was a Mr Orchard tending his garden, which helped endorse the road's name. He had a garden and plantation at the corner of what is now Scotts Road and Orchard Road. Towards the later part of the 1840s , Graveyard s began to appear along the road. By 1846 , the Chinese had a large graveyard around what is now the Mandarin Hotel and Ngee Ann City , while the Sumatra ns from Bencoolen had their burial ground where the current Grand Central Hotel stands. Later a Jewish cemetery was established; it was located where Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station is now situated, and demolished in 1984 . In the 1860s , Orchard Road had a great number of private houses and Bungalow s on Hill s looking down through the Valley where the road passed through. Early in the 1890s , His Majesty Somdetch Phra Paramindr Maha Chulalongkorn , the supreme King Of Siam , acquired "Hurricane House" in the vicinity of Orchard Road through Tan Kim Cheng , the Thai Consul in Singapore. Two further pieces of adjoining property were added later and these subsequently became the site of the present Royal Thai Embassy at 370 Orchard Road. In the early 20th Century , it was noted that Orchard Road "''present the appearance of a well-shaded avenue to English Mansion [s ''", comparable in its "''quiet but effective beauty to Devonshire lanes.''" The Chinese called the area ''tang leng pa sat koi'' or " Tanglin market street". The Tamils refer to the road as ''vaira kimadam'' or " Fakir 's place", and ''muttu than'' (high ground), a reference to the hilly nature of the area. NOTABLE PAST AND PRESENT LANDMARKS Perhaps the most elegant building on Orchard Road is the palm, this site must have once been a mangrove Swamp .''" If this information is accurate, then Orchard Road was once a Mud dy swamp and these palms remnants of that original Habitat . On the northern side of Orchard Road is the Botanic Gardens . Along Scotts Road is Goodwood Park Hotel , a fine example of Colonial Architecture and a Monument . At the junction of Scotts Road and Orchard Road is C.K. Tang , one of the earliest upmarket Department Store s in Singapore. About halfway down Orchard Road are Cairnhill and Emerald Hill , where the rich Chinese built their residences, now prime properties sought after by affluent Professional s and Expatriate s. Next to Emerald Hill is Centrepoint , which houses the supermarket Cold Storage , possibly the oldest surviving business establishment in the area. Other establishments have not been so fortunate. Amber Mansions, one of the earliest Apartment blocks in Singapore, built around the turn of the 20th Century , was torn down in the 1980s to make way for the Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station . Occupying the site of the former Pavilion Cinema, Specialists' Shopping Centre was one of the earliest redevelopment projects on Orchard Road. Its flagship store is John Little, which has been trading in Singapore since the mid- 19th Century , when it opened its first outlet in Commercial Square (now Raffles Place ). SHOPPING Orchard Road is flanked by pedestrian Malls . A retail complex under construction at the site named ''Orchard Turn'' has the distinction of also being a future Residential Area , and is planned to be completed by Christmas 2008. Orchard Road also contains numerous upmarket Restaurant s, coffee chains, Café s, Nightclub s and Hotel s. It is also the site of the official residence of the President Of Singapore , the Istana . List of shopping malls
TRANSPORT Public transport Mass Rapid Transit ]] There are three major MRT stations situated in the Orchard Road vicinity. They are Orchard , Somerset and Dhoby Ghaut . These three stations are important hubs for commuters, locals, students and tourists who travel to the Orchard Road shopping and business district. Buses There are many bus services provided by {Link without Title} that go to Orchard Road. The major bus stops along Orchard Road are situated at:
Taxi : Visitors can also travel to Orchard Road via Taxi . There are Taxi Stand s at Forum The Shopping Mall , all hotels, Lucky Plaza , Wisma Atria , Ngee Ann City , Paragon , The Heeren Shops , Centrepoint Shopping Centre , one next to Specialists' Shopping Centre and Plaza Singapura . Vehicular access Visitors accessing Orchard Road by road usually enter from the west via Napier Road, before exiting Orchard Road at Bras Basah Road. Coming from the north, vehicles can enter via Bukit Timah Road and Scotts Road which leads into Orchard Road. From the south, vehicles can enter through Orchard Boulevard and Paterson Road. REFERENCES
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