SINGAPORE: Ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday, tourists have been reminded to anticipate congestion at the Singapore-Malaysia area gates.
The , Woodlands, and Tuas checkpoints are scheduled to receive very heavy traffic from Jan 24 through Feb 1 according to a travel advisory issued on Monday ( Jan 20 ).
It advised visitors to , expect difficulties and issue in more time for immigration clearance , due to the ongoing increased checks.
” We seek visitors ‘ understanding to cooperate with ICA soldiers, observe traffic rules and maintain street control”, ICA said, adding that it will work against individuals who don’t agree with , officials ‘ instructions and undertake offences at the checkpoints.
Chinese New Year falls on Jan 29 this year.
RECORD NUMBER OF TRAVELLERS
A record daily number of more than 562, 000 travellers , crossed the Singapore-Malaysia land border at both checkpoints on Dec 20, 2024.
This surpassed the previous single-day record set on Dec 13, 2024, which registered 553, 000 crossings.
During the recent year-end school holidays from , Nov 15, 2024 to Jan 1, more than 24 million travellers , crossed the Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints, said ICA.
The authority noted that this was an increase of about 20 % compared to the same period in 2023.
Due to Malaysian traffic tailback,” car travelers departing during peak periods had to wait up to three hours for immigration clearance,” according to ICA.
It added that travellers can consider , taking the cross-border bus services instead.