Johor budget 2023: Restructuring lanes, more e-gates among measures to ease Causeway congestion

ISKANDAR PUTERI, Johor: Measures to ease congestion at Johor Bahru's Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) complex were among the initiatives announced during the tabling of the 2023 Johor state budget on Thursday (Dec 1). 

In tabling the budget, Johor chief minister Onn Hafiz Ghazi noted that since the international borders were fully reopened on Apr 1, an average of 211,000 people passed through the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar (BSI) which houses the CIQ daily. He said that measures will be implemented to ease the congestion at the Causeway.

Mr Onn Hafiz said that among the measures that will be implemented include the restructuring of lanes for motorcycles and cars entering as well as exiting Johor. 

To speed up immigration processes for Malaysians, he added that there will be more electronic gates (e-gates) for those passing through on foot or via buses. 

“There will be more e-gates for Malaysians, from 14 to 32 units at the entry points and 14 to 26 units at the exit points,” he added. 

Mr Onn Hafiz also announced that foreigners will soon be able to use e-gates for automated immigration processing. 

“The immigration department will expand the use of e-gates for foreigners. This will reduce congestion at BSI,” said Mr. Onn Hafiz. 

He also highlighted that the state government is studying the feasibility of allowing light vehicles to use the lorry lanes “as an alternative route” during peak hours.

“This will involve upgrading of counters for the convenience of car drivers,” he added. 

In his speech, Mr Onn Hafiz said that the reopening of land borders between Malaysia and Singapore has benefitted Johor immensely. 

He said that in 2022, Johor attracted RM60.9 billion (US$13.82 billion) in investments, the highest among all the states in Malaysia. He added that unemployment in Johor also dipped from 4 per cent in the third quarter of 2021 to 2.5 per cent in 2022, the lowest among all states. 

The 2023 state budget, which is themed “Onward Johor: Prosperity with the people”, is expected to yield a surplus, said the chief minister. 

Johor’s revenue for 2023 is expected to be RM1.73418 billion while its expenditure is slated to be RM1.73174 billion, yielding a net surplus of around RM2.44 million. 

This comes after two years of budget deficit in the southern state. 

Among the other initiatives that will be implemented is the upgrading of the highways in Johor Bahru to enhance movement of people in and around the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link project. 

Mr Onn Hafiz said that RM371 million will be set aside to upgrade the Eastern Dispersal Link expressway, as well as typically congested roads Jalan Lingkaran Dalam and Jalan Tebrau. 

The RTS Link is a 4km rail shuttle service between the Singapore terminus at Woodlands North station and the Malaysia terminus at Bukit Chagar station in Johor Bahru.

When it starts operations at the end of 2026, the service is expected to have a capacity of up to 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction.

Mr Onn Hafiz added that the state government is also looking to boost its tourism offerings by developing attractions in the greater Johor Bahru area. 

This includes funds set aside to develop national parks, the Johor Zoo, the Royal Abu Bakar museum and Kota Tinggi waterfall.