JOHOR BARU, June 3 ― The Johor government recommended activation of the contra lane at the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex (CIQ) of the Sultan Iskandar Building (BSI) here and the Sultan Abu Bakar Complex (KSAB) in Iskandar Puteri to overcome the unusual congestion at the two locations.

Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi said the extraordinary congestion at the two locations since last Thursday was due to the school and public holidays, and the weekend.

He said more than 258,000 travellers were recorded using the route at BSI and 63,000 travellers at KSAB last Thursday.

"To ensure that this does not happen again, I have asked the management of BSI and KSAB to consider opening the contra lanes specifically for travellers using the walkway and public transport, especially during school holidays or long holidays.

"This contra lane can be activated for inbound and outbound movements from the country during certain periods, such as school holidays or festive seasons,” he said in a post on his Facebook page last night.

Onn Hafiz, who was at the BSI CIQ yesterday, advised users of the Johor Causeway and the Malaysia-Singapore Second Line (Linkedua) to plan their journey in advance so as not to get caught in traffic jams.

Several photos of the congestion at the BSI CIQ were shared by members of the public on social media since yesterday. ― Bernama