‘Countries should work together to ease Causeway traffic congestion‘

Malaysian and Singaporean authorities need to work together to ease traffic congestion on the Causeway — filepic

JOHOR BARU: Malaysian and Singaporean authorities need to work together to ease traffic congestion on the Causeway as it is resulting in economic losses for both countries.

Pan-Malaysian Lorry Owners’ Association president Anthony Tan said visits by ministers to Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) complex when Barisan Nasional was in power brought changes to the situation.

“The Pakatan Harapan ministers and Johor lawmakers came to the CIQ recently but no immediate action has been taken to rectify the situation,’’ he said when contacted.

Tan said infrequent users of the Causeway, especially those from outside Johor, would find the task of passing through the land link daunting as they could get stuck there for over an hour.

“But for thousands of Malaysians who commute daily from Johor Baru to Singapore for work, it is a normal affair for them,’’ he said.

The Johor Causeway, which is about 1.06km in length, was completed in 1932 and links Johor Baru to Woodlands on the other side of the Straits of Johor.

About 100,000 vehicles use it daily. Unofficial statistics show that some 300,000 Malaysians commute daily from Johor to Singapore for work.

Johor and Singapore are also connected via the Second Link, a 1.9km dual three-lane carriageway linking Tanjung Kupang in Gelang Patah to Tuas in Singapore.

Tan said carpooling should be implemented by Malaysia and Singapore for those going to work in the republic as the move could help to reduce congestion at the Causeway.

“Most of the time, you only see a driver or a driver with a passenger next to him in a private car and the majority of them are locals driving Singapore-registered cars to work,” he said.

Tan said lorries from southern parts of Johor delivering goods to Singapore still preferred to use the Causeway instead of the Second Link because of the close proximity with delivery locations in the republic.

He said lorries using the Second Link usually came from northern parts of Johor, other states and Thailand.

Johor Consumers Movement Association chairman Md Salleh Sadijo said Malaysia and Singapore must synchronise their respective manning of personnel to ensure smooth flow of human and vehicle traffic.

“This perennial problem seems endless for decades despite improvement of facilities on both sides.

“In a nutshell, it’s the human input that will solve the problem,’’ he said.