With the long weekend owing to the Good Friday public holiday, Singaporeans alike took the opportunity to head over to Johor Bahru for a short getaway.
But all good things must come to an end.
On Sunday (17 Apr), many travellers made their way back to Singapore, forming long snaking queues at Johor Bahru customs.
Long Queues to Enter on Friday
Previously on Friday (15 Apr), a similar scene was seen as many travellers queued to leave Singapore and spend the long weekend in Malaysia.
In fact, Singapore’s Immigration and Checkpoints Authority released a statement on 13 April in anticipation of the crowds and advised travellers to factor in additional time for immigration clearance.
Travellers who were at the sight shared photos of the scenes on the Facebook page Malaysia-Singapore Border Crossers (MSBC).
Queue Started at 12pm
According to the posts, queues had started forming as early as 12pm on 17 April.
At 12.30pm, a large crowd had already formed.
Even after four hours at 3.10pm, the queues had not seemed to become shorter.
Long Snaking Queue Forms
A short while later, the long queue had turned into three lines as the queue stopped and u-turned to accommodate more people in the space.
Some travellers were also spotted with luggage.
Despite the heavy crowd, the process of clearing customs was quick and efficient, according to some comments and videos on Facebook.
Crowd is Gone
At 5.30pm, there was no queue in sight outside CIQ Building, a total contrast from the earlier scene.
Most of the travellers were now inside the building, with numerous lines extending outwards from immigration clearance counters.
Finally by 7pm, the crowds were all gone and only a few travellers were left making their way through customs.
Traffic Jam
Meanwhile, those who had opted to return to Singapore by car were also met with a long line of vehicles.
At 6.30pm, cars had to wait around 25 to 35 minutes to reach Singapore.
Closer to 8.30pm, the wait time had reduced to 15 to 20 minutes.
This marks the third weekend since the causeway reopened on 1 April. Last weekend, the queue to return to Singapore had taken over an hour.
It seems the process has become more efficient over the weeks, resulting in much praise from travellers.
Featured Image: Facebook (Vic Devilz) + (Maverick Shaw)
