SINGAPORE - Pedestrian traffic across the Causeway appeared to have returned to normal on Friday afternoon (Dec 18) after massive jams the day before forced hundreds to cross into Singapore on foot.
Many heading into Singapore via the Woodlands Checkpoint on Friday evening said that they did not experience long waiting times, with a processing time of less than an hour.
However, some The Straits Times spoke to said that this could be because fewer people cross into Singapore in the evening. "Fewer people work the night shift, so the crowd is smaller," said Mr Yusop Sarip, 32, a technician who lives in Johor but works in Singapore.
There was however heavy traffic in both directions at the checkpoint, with the jam stretching the length of the Causeway at 6pm. Bumper-to bumper traffic could be seen on Land Transport Authority traffic cameras from as early as 4.30pm.
Johor Lorry Association president Anthony Tan was quoted in Malaysian paper, The New Straits Times, as saying that the congestion has gone from bad to worse.
He said the security checks have affected more than 3,000 lorries plying in and out of Singapore from the Causeway. Mr Tan claimed drivers complained about having to wait more than six hours to clear the checkpoint.
On Thursday morning, snaking queues were seen on both vehicle lanes and pedestrian lanes on the Causeway, as people fed up with traffic jams took to crossing on foot instead.
There was congestion as hundreds of commuters from Malaysia decided to walk to the Woodlands Checkpoint to enter Singapore.
The jams, which began at about 5am on Thursday, were due to stepped-up security at checkpoints into Singapore after the terrorist attacks in Paris, as well as increased traffic due to the Christmas season, reported Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao.
Pedestrians from Malaysia had to wait for more than an hour to enter Singapore, said Shin Min Daily News. Some gave up and turned back, while others joked about swimming across, said the Chinese papers. Police manpower was increased on both sides of the Causeway, and traffic eased at about 8am. Traffic was reportedly smooth at the Tuas Checkpoint.
The traffic jams at the causeway have had a knock-on effect on the availability of train tickets between Johor Baru and Woodlands checkpoint, making them harder to obtain than ever, Lianhe Wanbao reported.
Taking the train helps commuters avoid the jams, thus the tickets were always popular. They are snapped up nearly one month in advance, on the day that they are released.
For example, the tickets for Jan 18, 2016 are available from Sunday (Dec 20), and one commuter Mr Zhang, 61, told Wanbao that he will go to the train station at 4am to attempt to buy one.
He said that when the train service started in July, he could get tickets if he queued at 6am, but recently, they are sold out by then.
Some commuters wait at the ticket counter in Johor Baru in case there are places due to last minute refunds, Wanbao said.
