Additional immigration officers to ease JB CIQ congestion

Johor Chief Minister Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi emphasized that the state government has not adopted a temporary approach to address the persistent congestion at the Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine (CIQ) Complexes in Bangunan Sultan Iskandar (BSI) and Sultan Abu Bakar Complex (KSAB).

In his quest to find solutions to the congestion issue that affects around 300,000 Malaysian citizens daily, he personally conducted 60 field visits to BSI CIQ and 14 visits to KSAB CIQ, he said during the state assembly sitting.

To tackle the congestion problem, the chief minister announced that an additional 250 immigration officers will be deployed to the land checkpoints in Johor by September. This is in addition to the 100 immigration officers already scheduled for deployment in June, specifically targeting the congestion issue at BSI CIQ at the Causeway and KSAB CIQ at the Second Link.

Onn Hafiz also highlighted immediate and short-term measures to alleviate traffic congestion while awaiting the operationalization of the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link in 2026.

Immigration officers to reduce traffic congestion

To tackle the traffic congestion issue at the land checkpoints, several measures have been announced. The first measure involves increasing the number of passenger buses to improve transportation options for travellers.

Additionally, the flow of traffic, especially on the bus routes, will be controlled to enhance efficiency. The position of the electronic gates (e-gates) will be modified to streamline the immigration process, and more M-Bike (Malaysia Biometric Identification of Motorbikes) stickers will be issued.

These measures aim to address the congestion issue promptly while waiting for the long-term solution provided by the RTS Link.

Johor Bahru-Singapore RTS Link progress

The RTS Link project aims to connect Bukit Chagar in Johor Bahru City to Woodlands in Singapore, providing a rapid transit system to alleviate traffic congestion on the Causeway.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Johor-Singapore Causeway witnessed over 300,000 crossings daily, making it one of the busiest borders globally, reported Channel News Asia. During the 2022 year-end holiday season, more than 360,000 travellers passed through the Woodlands and Tuas Checkpoints each day.

Construction progress on both sides of the RTS Link has been noted, with the Singapore side being around 50% completed and the Malaysia side around a third complete. The RTS Link is expected to accommodate approximately 10,000 passengers per hour each way and will significantly contribute to easing traffic congestion in the future.

Onn Hafiz acknowledges the shortage of immigration officers at the checkpoints, emphasizing the need to resolve the manpower issue promptly. He has assured that the state government is actively monitoring the situation and will continue to take measures to ensure consistent improvements.

The deployment of additional immigration officers aims to address the congestion issue and improve efficiency at the land checkpoints.