JOHOR BARU: A massive power outage at the Woodlands Checkpoint in Singapore has caused a heavy traffic jam on most major roads leading to the Malaysian checkpoint here.
Although all counters were operating at optimum level at the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complex (BSI) here, the jam lasted for many hours due to a buildup of vehicles from the Singapore side.
It is learnt that the issue started at about noon on the Singapore side.
A Home Ministry official said the situation was worsened by a lorry heading to Singapore experiencing mechanical failure.
At press time, it remains unclear what caused the power outage in Singapore.
However, authorities were doing their best to resolve the congestion, including opening additional lanes to clear immigration.
Additional police personnel have also been deployed around BSI and major access roads to manage the peak-hour rush of workers returning from Singapore.
Among the major roads affected were Jalan Tebrau, Jalan Skudai and Jalan Lingkaran Dalam.
At press time, the travel time into Johor Bahru was 32 minutes while travel into Singapore from Johor Bahru stood at one hour and 10 minutes.
Meanwhile Singapore's Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) in their Fecebook only mentioned that travellers planning to enter Singapore via Woodlands Checkpoint should expect delays.
They said that two vehicles have broken down near the International Boundary along the Causeway towards Singapore.
It is blocking one out of three lanes.
Meanwhile, Singapore’s Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) clarified that no power outage was experienced at Woodlands Checkpoint on Wednesday, but a planned electrical maintenance work was conducted at the Old Woodlands Checkpoint from 10am to 2pm.
“While the Old Woodlands Checkpoint was temporarily unavailable for the clearance of arriving lorries during the works, lorry clearance continued at Woodlands Checkpoint.
“During this period, some Singapore-bound cargo traffic built up on the Causeway. Operations at the Old Woodlands Checkpoint resumed at around 4pm,” a spokesman said.
The spokesman also said that later in the day, ICA observed that two lorries broke down on the Malaysian side of the Causeway towards Singapore at approximately 4.30pm and 6.30pm, respectively.
“The breakdowns blocked one of the three arrival lanes, contributing to traffic queues extending from the lorry breakdown sites into Malaysia.
“The congestion was exacerbated by the higher volume of vehicles during the evening peak period,” the spokesman said, adding that ICA observed that the first lorry was removed only at 9.50pm that evening, while the second was removed at around 12.22am the next day, on Nov 5.
The official said that during this period, traffic towards Woodlands Checkpoint was disrupted.
ICA posted advisories on its Facebook page to alert travellers to the vehicle breakdowns and expected delays, and to notify them when the affected lane reopened.
