Heavy traffic into Singapore at Woodlands Checkpoint after ICA steps up security checks
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The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority said that it would be stepping up security checks on arriving travellers and cargo at the land, air and sea checkpoints.
ST PHOTO: STEPHANIE YEOW
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SINGAPORE – Travellers into Singapore faced traffic congestion at the Woodlands Checkpoint on March 2, two days after immigration checks were heightened amid the escalating conflict in the Middle East.
People using the Causeway reported bad traffic jams with images showing lanes for motorcycles, cars and cargo trucks congested.
Travellers also experienced long queues for cross-border buses at the checkpoint bays.
According to Checkpoint.SG, an app that tracks traffic conditions at the land checkpoints, the estimated time to cross the Causeway into Singapore as at about 9.30am was between 105 minutes and 160 minutes.
Comparatively, the journey at about the same time seven days ago would have taken fewer than 20 minutes, according to the app.
Beat The Jam, another app that tracks land checkpoint traffic, puts the estimated travel time at 103 minutes to 155 minutes.
The same journey about four weeks ago would have taken about 37 minutes, according to the app.
Travellers at the Tuas Checkpoint appeared to be facing lighter traffic.
The estimated travel time for people heading to Singapore via the Second Link at Tuas was 25-35 minutes at around 9.30am, according to the Checkpoint.SG app, and 21-32 minutes according to the Beat The Jam app.
Heavy arrival traffic at Woodlands Checkpoint was expected, said the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) early on the morning of March 2.
The ICA said on Feb 28 that it would be stepping up security checks on arriving travellers and cargo at the land, air and sea checkpoints because of the heightened global security situation.
The United States and Israel conducted strikes on Iran on Feb 28, killing its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. strikes against Israel and US military bases in the Middle East,
Heavy traffic and extended bus queues had already been reported on March 1, as Malaysians working in Singapore returned to the Republic to start their work week, with many opting to cross the Causeway by foot.
