JOHOR BARU: Tighter security at the Malaysia-Singapore land checkpoints has caused massive traffic congestion, particularly for thousands of motorcyclists commuting daily.
It is learnt that the congestion, which peaks around 6am and 7pm, began recently after border officials intensified checks following more than two dozen cases of Malaysians entering or leaving without passport checking.
This has not gone down well with motorcyclists, who want the government to expand automated lanes at both checkpoints.
A motorcyclist who wants to be identified only as Tan said the additional security checks at manual counters were a nightmare and the cause of massive jams in the mornings.
“Yes, we should not compromise on our safety and security but we need more lanes with QR codes associated with the National Integrated Immigration System (NIISe), which operates through the MyNIISe mobile app or the MyBorderPass app.”
He added that he would never exit the country without stamping his passport as his friend lost his job after being detained and fined by the Immigration Department.
Another motorcyclist, 44-year-old Razak Ahmad, said the long queues made travel tiring, especially returning to Malaysia.
“To avoid the jams, I now leave as early as 4am. The congestion isn’t just at Johor Baru but also at the Second Link in the evenings,” he said, calling for more automated lanes at both checkpoints.
