Common Services Tunnels Act 2018 - Singapore Statutes Online

Common Services Tunnels
Act 2018

2020 REVISED EDITION

This revised edition incorporates all amendments up to and including 1 December 2021 and comes into operation on 31 December 2021

An Act to establish common services tunnel areas and for the regulation of activities within or connected with common services tunnel areas to ensure the safe and efficient operation and functionality of any common services tunnel and any ancillary facility of the common services tunnel, and for connected purposes.

[6 November 2020]

PART 1

PRELIMINARY

Short title

1. This Act is the Common Services Tunnels Act 2018.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“ancillary facility”, in relation to a common services tunnel, means —

(a)	any electrical substation, electrical switch room, generator set room or control centre used for the purposes of the common services tunnel; and
(b)	any ancillary structure;

“ancillary structure”, in relation to a common services tunnel, means —

(a)	any entrance to or exit from the common services tunnel;
(b)	any passage, corridor or stairway connecting an entrance to or exit from the common services tunnel;
(c)	any ventilation opening, duct or shaft necessary for the operation or functioning of the common services tunnel; and
(d)	any supporting physical structure necessary for the operation or functioning of the common services tunnel;

“authorised officer” means an authorised officer appointed under section 5(1);

“authorised person” has the meaning given by section 9(7);

“common services tunnel” or “CST” means a system of underground concrete structures within a common services tunnel area used or intended to be used for the purpose of the housing and distribution of utility services to land within and outside the area;

“common services tunnel area” or “CST area” means an area declared as a common services tunnel area under section 6;

“Common Services Tunnels Authority” or “CST Authority”, in relation to any provision of this Act or CST area, means —

(a)	any CST Authority appointed under section 4 to be responsible for the administration of that provision; and
(b)	if different CST Authorities are appointed under section 4 for different CST areas, the CST Authority appointed for that CST area;

“entrance” or “exit”, in relation to a common services tunnel, includes a manhole leading to or from, as the case may be, the common services tunnel;

“land” includes buildings, premises, easements and hereditaments of any tenure;

“occupier” means a person in occupation of any land and includes the person having the charge, management or control of the land either on his or her own account or as an agent of another person;

“private land” means any land other than public land;

“public authority” means a body established or constituted by or under a public Act to perform or discharge a public function;

“public land” means any of the following land, whether publicly accessible or not:

(a)	State land;
(b)	common property or open space vested in or under the care, control or management of the Housing and Development Board established under the Housing and Development Act 1959 or a Town Council established under the Town Councils Act 1988; or
(c)	any land vested in or under the care, control or management of any other public authority by the operation of written law;

“utility service” means —

(a)

for electricity —

(i)	the distribution of electricity through an electricity network;
(ii)	the transmission of electricity through an electricity network;
(iii)	the generation of electricity connected to an electricity network; or
(iv)	the provision by a person to another person of an electricity connection service;

(b)

for gas —

(i)	the distribution of gas through a gas distribution network;
(ii)	the transmission of gas through a gas transmission network; or
(iii)	the provision by a person to another person of a gas connection service;

(c)

for water —

(i)	the collection or treatment, or both, of water for distribution through a water network;
(ii)	the provision by a person to another person of a water connection service;
(iii)	the making of a water network available for the provision of a water connection service;
(iv)	the distribution of water through a water network; or
(v)	the supply of water from a water network by a person to the premises of another person for consumption or use;

(d)

for sewerage —

(i)	the provision by a person to another person of a sewerage connection service;
(ii)	the making of a sewerage network available for the provision of a sewerage connection service; or
(iii)	the provision by a person to another person of a sewerage service;

(e)

the provision by a person to another person of a broadcasting service (within the meaning of the Broadcasting Act 1994) or a telecommunication service (within the meaning of the Telecommunications Act 1999);

(f)

the provision by a person to another person of the service of draining stormwater or surface water, or of pneumatic refuse removal; or

(g)

the provision by a person of such other service prescribed as a utility service for the purposes of this Act;

“utility services infrastructure” means any cables, wires, lines, pipes, or ducts used, or for use, in relation to the provision of any utility service, and includes any of the following:

(a)	powerlines, substations and equipment for monitoring, distributing, converting, transforming or controlling electricity;
(b)	pipelines, meters or equipment (such as pressure control devices, excess flow valves, actuators, electrical equipment, telemetry equipment and protection installations) used, or for use, in relation to the transmission or distribution of gas;
(c)	water storages, mains and treatment plants, pumps, facilities and equipment for distributing water, or monitoring or controlling the distribution of water for supply to premises;
(d)	sewerage storages, trunk sewers, mains and treatment plants, pumps, facilities and equipment for conveying sewerage, or monitoring or controlling the conveyance of sewerage.

(2) In this Act —

(a)

a reference to the maintenance and repair of a common services tunnel —

(i)

means maintaining, repairing or improving the structure of the common services tunnel, and carrying out such other temporary or permanent works as may be necessary, to render the common services tunnel safe, functional and operational; and

(ii)

includes installing, operating, maintaining, repairing and improving any plant, installation, equipment, machinery, cables, wires, lines, pipes, drains, ducts and other facilities laid, placed, installed or housed within the common services tunnel that are —

(A)	utility services infrastructure; or
(B)	used, or for use, in relation to the operation and functioning of the common services tunnel itself; and

(b)

a reference to the maintenance and repair of an ancillary facility of a common services tunnel —

(i)

means maintaining, repairing or improving the structure of the ancillary facility of the common services tunnel, and carrying out such other temporary or permanent works as may be necessary, to render the ancillary facility of the common services tunnel safe, functional and operational; and

(ii)

(A)	for the use or functioning of the ancillary facility; or
(B)	for the operation and functioning of the common services tunnel itself.

Purpose of Act

3. The purpose of this Act is —

(a)	to establish common services tunnel areas;
(b)	to ensure the safe and efficient operation and functionality of common services tunnels and any ancillary facility of a common services tunnel;
(c)	to require suppliers of utility services to execute agreements to use a common services tunnel for the purpose of laying, placing or installing, or to house, their utility services infrastructure;
(d)	to secure the right of access by authorised officers, authorised persons and persons authorised by authorised officers to any common services tunnel and any ancillary facility of the common services tunnel; and
(e)	to ensure the upkeep of any ancillary facility of a common services tunnel by owners and occupiers of land on which the ancillary facility is located.

PART 2

ADMINISTRATION

Common Services Tunnels Authority

4.—(1) The Minister may appoint a person to be a Common Services Tunnels Authority responsible for the administration of this Act.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), the Minister may —

(a)

appoint different Common Services Tunnels Authorities to be responsible —

(i)	for the whole or any provision of this Act, or for different regulations made under this Act; and
(ii)	for different common services tunnel areas; and

(b)

specify the extent and manner in which the responsibility mentioned in paragraph (a) is to be exercised.

(3) Where a public authority is appointed by the Minister under subsection (1) to be a CST Authority responsible for the operation of this Act, for any particular Part or provision of this Act or for any particular regulations made under this Act, whether in respect of all common services tunnel areas or any common services tunnel area —

(a)	it is the function and duty of the public authority to do so in accordance with that subsection, in addition to such functions and duties imposed on the public authority under any other written law; and
(b)	the public authority is deemed to be fulfilling the purposes of the Act constituting that public authority, and the provisions of that Act apply to the public authority in respect of that function and duty.

Authorised officers

5.—(1) A CST Authority may, by name or office, appoint as an authorised officer —

(a)	any public officer; or
(b)	any employee of an approved public authority.

(2) An authorised officer is subject to the direction and control of the CST Authority that appointed the authorised officer.

(3) An authorised officer appointed under subsection (1) is deemed to be a public servant for the purposes of the Penal Code 1871.

(4) In subsection (1)(b), “approved public authority” means a public authority which is approved by the Minister for the purposes of this section.

PART 3

COMMON SERVICES TUNNEL AREAS

Declaration of common services tunnel areas

6.—(1) The Minister may, from time to time, by notification in the Gazette, declare an area to be a common services tunnel area.

(2) The area that may be declared a common services tunnel area consists of any area within Singapore within which a common services tunnel and any ancillary facility of the common services tunnel is built or is proposed to be built.

(3) A notification under subsection (1) must —

(a)	define the limits of the common services tunnel area; or
(b)	state that a plan of the common services tunnel area may be inspected at a place and within such time as is specified in the notification.

Changes to common services tunnel area

7.—(1) The Minister may, by notification in the Gazette —

(a)	revoke any declaration made under section 6(1); or
(b)	modify an area declared as a common services tunnel area under section 6(1).

(2) A notification under subsection (1)(b) modifying an area declared as a common services tunnel area must —

(a)	define the part of the common services tunnel area that is modified; or
(b)	provide that a plan of the modification of the common services tunnel area may be inspected at a place and within such time as is specified in the notification.

Notice of declaration and modification of declaration

8.—(1) Before making any declaration under section 6(1) or modifying a declaration under section 7(1)(b), the Minister must give advance notice in the Gazette of the Minister’s intention to make or modify the declaration.

(2) The notice mentioned in subsection (1) —

(a)

must either —

(i)	define the area that is proposed to be declared as a common services tunnel area or the part of common services tunnel area that is proposed to be modified; or
(ii)	provide that a plan of the proposed common services tunnel area or of the part of the common services tunnel area proposed to be modified may be inspected at a place and within such time as is specified in the notice; and

(b)

must specify the time (not being less than 28 days after the publication of the notice in the Gazette) within which written representations with respect to the intended declaration or modification of the declaration may be made.

(3) The Minister must consider any written representation that is made within the time specified in the notice under subsection (2)(b).

(4) The decision of the Minister after considering any written representation is final.

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