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STUCK: Truck drivers stretching their legs after waiting for hours at the Tuas Checkpoint. Many are losing money by the hour and facing pressure from their bosses to make deliveries. -- ST PHOTO: EDWIN KOO
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STRICT checks for fugitive Mas Selamat Kastari have spawned massive traffic jams at the country's two border crossings, with queues of lorries stretching up to 10km from the Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints.
Some truck drivers have been stuck in the line for over 15 hours as the authorities scour their rigs for the country's most wanted man, who escaped from a detention centre last Wednesday.
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said the checks - part of the biggest manhunt in Singapore's history - will continue this weekend, the beginning of school holidays.
That could add to delays for commuters heading to Malaysia for the break. The rush is expected to start on Friday evening. Coming into Singapore, traffic is expected to be heavy on March 15 and 16.
The ICA has advised motorists to be patient and avoid the checkpoints during peak periods.
The queues, though, are not expected to be as long as those facing lorry drivers.
About 400 trucks formed snaking lines from the Woodlands Checkpoint to the Bukit Timah Expressway and also to Kranji yesterday afternoon. Another mammoth queue of over 200 lorries waited at the Tuas Checkpoint.
Woodlands Road turned into an impromptu campsite, with drivers napping in their lorries and empty containers of instant noodles strewn alongside a nearby drain.
Many frustrated drivers said they had been stuck near the checkpoint since Tuesday.
'For two days, I haven't bathed and I haven't slept or eaten properly,' said Mr Wan Kim Poh, 39, yesterday.
He usually shuttles three times a day between Johor and Singapore, hauling construction material. He spent 19 hours in the jam, but was still nowhere near the checkpoint when he spoke to The Straits Times at about 12.30pm.
Many drivers are losing money by the hour and are facing pressure from their bosses to make deliveries.
'I got such a headache explaining to my boss,' said Mr Wan. 'He is angry because he does not believe I have been stuck in Woodlands for so long.'
The ICA, though, said it has no plans to let up on the checks.
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