Commuters call for one app to clear Johor-S'pore checkpoints
JOHOR BAHRU – Regular users of both of Johor’s land checkpoints with Singapore are asking for the Malaysian state’s government to settle for one single system to provide ease and consistency, following a three-month trial involving three applications.
More than 320,000 Malaysian commuters have been using the three applications to clear both land checkpoints since June in the respective proof-of-concept trials to allow for faster cross-border clearances.
Currently, people crossing the Sultan Abu Bakar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) complex (KSAB) at the Second Link have been using MyTrip, while those using the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar CIQ in Johor Bahru (BSI) have been using MyRentas.
Malaysian motorcyclists in Johor Bahru have been using MyBorderPass, which allows for the use of facial recognition or scanning of a QR code.
It is learnt that to date, MyTrip has the most registrations, with almost 190,000, followed by MyBorderPass and MyRentas, with about 65,000 each.
Motorcyclist Daniel Ooi, 58, who has been travelling to Singapore for work in the last 35 years, hopes the government will learn from the M-Bike fiasco, when the system became problematic in March.
“The system was down for so long and caused a lot of problems to the people. I hope the government will think long term and plan one system to be used at both checkpoints.
“Personally, I enjoy using MyBorderPass with facial recognition. However, I feel that the AI cameras are mounted too high, resulting in motorcyclists having to stop and stand up while at the gantry,” he said, adding that he crosses BSI at 4am and returns home using KSAB in the evening.
Another motorcyclist Rosli Mat Hassan, 42, said he also prefers one system.
He asked that more new gantries be installed as the number of new users is increasing, resulting in some congestion at the motorcycle lanes at BSI during peak hours.
“I hope they also think of future upgrades and proper maintenance for these high-tech machines, as it will be pointless to have a system which breaks down frequently,” he added.
Bus user K. Sumumari, 38, who uses the Second Link, said scanning the QR Code is very convenient and allows her to clear immigration faster.
“If we have facial recognition at the bus lanes in future, then it will be even faster,” she said, adding that she has been working in Singapore for the past 10 years.
Johor works, transportation, infrastructure and communications committee chairman Fazli Salleh said the state government hopes to choose a smooth and easy to use system now that the trial period has ended on Aug 31.
“We want a good system to be implemented to ease the movement of people, especially with the upcoming Johor-Singapore special economic zone.
“We are aware that there could be more than one vendor appointed, but we want a system which is installed properly and maintained,” he said, acknowledging that having more than one system at checkpoints has caused confusion.
As to when the government will announce the system, he said the matter “will be finalised soon”, without offering a specific date.
He said the state government hopes AI-based cameras with facial recognition will be installed at all the arrival and exit halls.
“So, we will not have counters but have cameras installed all over,” he said, adding that the main objective is to ease the cross-border movement of people and goods. – THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
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