Orchard Road is set to undergo a S$40 million rejuvenation to make it a more attractive destination, with state of the art lighting, ush tree-lined boulevard, new creative spaces for staging events and a more integrated and engaging pedestrian mall.

The Orchard Road rejuvenation plans were unveiled on Monday ahead of a tender for the main mall enhancement construction works, which will be called next month.

The announcement follows the sale of three prime sites by the Urban Redevelopment Authority last year, targeted to increase the number of shopping venues and diversity of retail concepts and options to Orchard Road.

Apart from the development of ION Orchard, Somerset Central and Orchard Central, older venues such as Hotel Phoenix and Specialist's Shopping Centre are slated for redevelopment, said the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) on Monday.

New international brands like Frank Muller, Jimmy Choo, Richard Mille and Van Cleef & Arpels, as well as new initiatives such as the weekly Late Night Shopping have injected new vibrancy to the retail scene.

Consistently ranked the most-visited attraction in Singapore, Orchard Road attracts more than seven million visitors each year, while thousands of local residents visit the area for leisure and work each day.

'Orchard Road is synonymous with shopping in Singapore, and is the venue for some of Singapore's signature annual leisure events such as the Great Singapore Sale, Singapore Fashion Festival, Christmas in the Tropics light-up and Chingay Parade of Dreams,' said Ms Margaret Teo, STB Assistant Chief Executive (Leisure).

'For Orchard Road to become an even more compelling lifestyle hub, we need to invest in both its infrastructure and services. Besides introducing new concept malls and exciting international brands to boost the retail offerings available, we need to improve the public infrastructure to enhance the pedestrian experience along Orchard Road.

"These infrastructural improvements will also open up many more entertainment and outdoor spaces for events and activities to create a more vibrant streetscape, thus enhancing the lifestyle experience on Orchard Road.'

The Orchard Road mall enhancement initiative was driven by a inter-agency taskforce comprising agencies such as Land Transport Authority (LTA) , National Parks Board ( NParks), STB and the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).

The Task Force has been working closely with the design consultant team, Cox Group (Australia) in partnership with Architects 61 (Singapore), to develop and fine-tune the design plans. A Design Advisory Panel (DAP), chaired by the Urban Redevelopment Authority was also appointed to evaluate the concept design and guide the design development. The views of the Orchard Road Business Association and various stakeholders of Orchard Road were also sought before finalising the concept plan.

Starting at the Tanglin Road/Grange Road intersection where Tanglin Mall is located, the infrastructural works will continue down Orchard Road to the intersection with Buyong Road, where Le Meridien Singapore is located. Three zones, namely the Tanglin, Orchard and Somerset zones, have been identified and will be characterised by the Flower, Forest and Fruit themes respectively.

All three zones will have enhanced road and pedestrian mall lighting, including state-of-the-art accent lighting to highlight Orchard Road's mature trees and foliage and to create strong night-time landscapes. In line with the minimal and sophisticated aesthetics of Orchard Road's enhancement design, new coordinated street furniture (granite benches, stainless steel-clad waste bins and bollards) and multi-functional lamp posts with a more extensive height and reach will be installed.