JOHOR BAHRU - The Johor state government’s move to improve conditions at the two land checkpoints with Singapore has resulted in faster clearance for travellers, said the state’s chief minister on Wednesday.
Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi said the clearance process at the checkpoints had been reduced from an hour to about 30 minutes, especially during peak hours.
“While this is good, we will continue to work with our (federal) partners in Putrajaya to improve the situation further,” he said at a business forum in Johor Bahru.
Mr Onn Hafiz, who has made almost 20 spot checks at the Customs and immigration complex since 2022, said improving connectivity with Singapore was of paramount importance.
“This will be a continuous effort,” he said.
On Tuesday, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the Immigration Department would assign 100 fresh graduates to the two land checkpoints in Johor.
“This would help BSI (Bangunan Sultan Iskandar) especially, which is one of the country’s busiest international entry points, handling close to 220,000 daily transboundary movements,” he said.
Datuk Seri Saifuddin said a dry run was conducted recently, and it proved to be effective in reducing congestion during peak hours.
He said other steps taken included constructing more autogates and combining passport checking and vehicle entry permit (VEP) counters into a single counter.
From August, visitors will need to make just one stop instead of two when clearing the land checkpoints.
Mr Saifuddin said these few seconds may seem inconsequential, but they can have a big effect on overall traffic flow.
A lawmaker from Johor welcomed the Immigration Department’s new work shifts for employees at both the BSI and Kompleks Sultan Abu Bakar entry points for travellers from Singapore, adding that it showed the government’s seriousness in addressing congestion problems at the checkpoints.
“As an elected representative from Johor, who is well aware of the bottleneck problems especially at the Causeway, I believe the new shift system will help ease the situation,” Segamat MP R. Yuneswaran said.
The change will see immigration staff work three shifts, from 9am to 6pm, 4pm to midnight, and midnight to 9am.
Previously, the shifts were from 7am to 4pm, 3pm to 11pm and 11pm to 8am.
“This is a proactive measure... to solve traffic congestion, especially during peak hours,” he said in a statement on Wednesday.
The new shifts will take effect on Sunday. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
