ICA refutes report that Woodlands Checkpoint power outage resulted in Causeway, JB congestion
In its account of what happened, ICA said a build-up of Singapore-bound traffic occurred amid planned electrical maintenance works, while two vehicle breakdowns on the Malaysian side of the Causeway subsequently contributed to traffic tailing back into Malaysia.
On November 5, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) dismissed a report suggesting a power outage at Woodlands Checkpoint caused congestion on the Causeway and in Johor Bahru. According to ICA, the congestion was due to a buildup of Singapore-bound traffic during scheduled electrical maintenance works, with two vehicle breakdowns on the Malaysian side contributing to the traffic tailing back into Malaysia.
The ICA spokesperson clarified that no power outage occurred at Woodlands Checkpoint on that date; rather, the Old Woodlands Checkpoint was temporarily closed for lorry clearance from 10am to 2pm on Wednesday. During this time, lorry clearance continued at Woodlands Checkpoint, leading to a build-up of Singapore-bound cargo traffic.
Later, two lorries broke down on the Malaysian side of the Causeway, blocking one of the three arrival lanes and causing traffic queues to extend into Malaysia. The first lorry was removed at 9.50pm, and the second at around 12.22am on Thursday. The congestion was exacerbated by higher evening traffic volumes. ICA advised travelers via Facebook about the breakdowns and lane reopenings, and travel times from Johor Bahru to Singapore and vice versa were 60-90 minutes and 50-70 minutes, respectively, as reported by The Star. Malaysian authorities opened extra lanes and increased police presence to address the congestion.
Written by urgent.news from Channel News Asia's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
