ISKANDAR PUTERI • Malaysia's Home Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said yesterday that there is a need to build a third link to ease traffic congestion between Johor and Singapore.

He told the Johor state assembly that he had already informed the federal government about the link, which could take the form of a bridge or a tunnel, national news agency Bernama reported.

"If the state government supports this, I will ensure this initiative be started," Tan Sri Muhyiddin said during a debate at the Johor state assembly sitting in Iskandar Puteri yesterday.

"Before, we used to have only one bridge. Then we had two bridges and now these two can no longer cope," he said, referring to the heavy traffic at the Causeway and the Second Link in Tuas.

Mr Muhyiddin is also chairman of the Special Committee on Congestion at the Johor Causeway.

Johor Public Works, Transport and Infrastructure Committee chairman Mohd Solihan Badri told reporters that Mr Muhyiddin's third bridge proposal is an appropriate step.

He said the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complex at Bangunan Sultan Iskandar that was built in 2003 will reach its full capacity next year.

Meanwhile, Malaysia and Singapore are proceeding with plans to build a cross-border Rapid Transit System Link - a 4km rail link which will connect the Woodlands North train station on Singapore's Thomson-East Coast MRT line to Bukit Chagar in Johor Baru.

While this rail link will help alleviate some of the heavy passenger traffic between Johor and Singapore, Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad had previously reiterated that there is still a need for a third bridge linking Singapore and Malaysia to accommodate vehicles.