Massive Jams At S’pore Checkpoints On Good Friday Long Weekend, Tailback Stretches To SLE

Huge Crowds & Long Queues At Singapore Land Checkpoints Entering JB Ahead Of Good Friday Weekend

The Good Friday long weekend is finally upon us, with three glorious days of rest to enjoy.

Unsurprisingly, many Singaporeans and Malaysians working here are heading across the border for the break.

That will mean only one thing — heavy traffic was predictably reported at Singapore’s border checkpoints ahead of the long weekend.

At Woodlands, the queues were so long that the tailback stretched back all the way to the Seletar Expressway (SLE).

ICA warns of delays at checkpoints on Good Friday weekend

As Good Friday is on 7 Apr this year, the long weekend officially started on Thursday (6 Apr) as border crossers got an early start.

That morning, the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) warned of delays at both Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints for those departing Singapore.

They advised travellers to check traffic conditions before embarking on their journeys.

Good Friday weekend jams start as early as 3pm plus at checkpoints

True enough, the jam at Tuas started as early as 3.37pm on Thursday, according to social media posts from the Malaysia-Singapore Border Crossers Facebook group.

At the time, the wait was already estimated to be up to more than four hours at the Second Link and close to six hours at the Causeway.

At 5.19pm, it could only get worse, with the queue to the Woodlands Checkpoint stretching back to the Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE).

After getting past Singapore customs, it was just as bad, with both sides of the Causeway bridge congested. However, while the queue towards Singapore was estimated at a manageable one hour 40 minutes, the wait to get into JB was almost three hours.

Those on the Second Link would find themselves stuck in the jam right after customs, on the bright heading into Malaysia.

Human jam at Woodlands Checkpoint

Those who travelled to Malaysia without driving a private vehicle wouldn’t fare much better.

At 5.12pm, the human jam at the Woodlands Checkpoint was such that people couldn’t even make it off the escalators, according to their photos.

Due to the traffic jam, many travellers would’ve decided to ditch their buses and walk across the Causeway instead, with people seen making the journey on foot as early as 5.59pm.

At 7.40pm, ICA said there was very heavy departure traffic at Tuas and Woodlands checkpoints.

This was following continuous tailbacks from Malaysia.

Sure enough, at 7.48pm, estimated waiting times at both crossings soared higher still. The congestion at Tuas even overtook the jam at Woodlands, with more than seven hours’ wait predicted at Tuas compared with six hours at Woodlands.

A netizen said the traffic situation at Tuas checkpoint was “worsening rapidly”.

After passing Singapore customs, a sea of motorcycles was seen inching towards JB at 7.45pm.

Over at the Causeway, the jam had already stretched back to Woodlands Avenue 3 at 7.32pm.

Huge crowds at Woodlands Checkpoint

For those taking bus, their queue would start at the bridge towards the Woodlands Checkpoint. This was the dismal scene there at 7.28pm:

The crowd even came to a standstill at one point, according to a photo shared at 8.03pm.

At 8.26pm, the crowd was so thick it seemed like it was difficult even to get on the bridge.

After getting past immigration, it was a struggle even to get on one’s bus due to the huge crowds.

This also applied to those taking public buses, with a long wait in store due to the sheer number of people.

Even by 9.10pm, the crowd on the bridge hadn’t abated.

This would’ve prompted more people to cross over on their own two legs rather than get stuck in buses.

Jams still going strong at night

As the night wore on, the traffic jams were still going strong.

At 9.43pm, the sea of motorbikes at Tuas remained intact.

At 10.59pm, the ICA told motorists that the departure traffic at the Woodlands Checkpoint had extended beyond the SLE.

A motorist travelling in the other direction from JB to Singapore at 11.24pm shared a video clip of the long line of vehicles on the other side.

Another motorist posted a video clip at 12.34am on 7 Apr that showed pedestrians still crossing the Causeway despite the late hour.

She said the traffic jam started all the way from the SLE exit to the BKE, at a time when many people would be asleep in bed.

At 12.23am, ICA updated that “very heavy departure traffic” persisted at Woodlands extending beyond the SLE.

At 1.30, ICA said the tailback had shortened somewhat, extending till Woodlands Avenue 3.

However, traffic was still very heavy, with an estimated time of up to almost three hours to get to JB.

At 2.54am, a queue of vehicles was still on the Causeway, according to traffic cameras.

Due to the heavy traffic, do consider postponing your trip to Malaysia by land if you can.

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Featured image adapted from Facebook and Facebook.