JOHOR BAHRU — Passengers using the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link could complete ticketing, security and immigration procedures at Bukit Chagar station and reach the train platform within 25 minutes, according to Malaysian authorities.
MRT Corp RTS Link project director Zulkifli Mohamed said the target was based on allocating about five minutes each for ticketing, security screening, immigration clearance for both countries and reaching the platform.
“We are targeting this – this means taking five minutes each to clear ticketing, security, immigration clearances for both countries, and travelling up to the train platform,” he said on August 17, as cited from CNA.
Zulkifli said authorities were also working to shorten the process further if all procedures could be streamlined.
“We are trying hard to improve it, if everything is streamlined, perhaps they can clear in 20 minutes,” he said.
The 4km RTS Link is scheduled to begin operations in early 2027 and is expected to carry up to 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction between Johor Bahru and Singapore.
The service is intended to reduce congestion on the Causeway, with the cross-border journey itself expected to take about five minutes.
Passengers will begin at the ground-floor concourse, where they can purchase tickets and pass through automated ticketing gates before heading upstairs for security screening.
The station will be equipped with 18 luggage scanners and nine body scanners using millimetre-wave technology and artificial intelligence to identify concealed metallic and non-metallic objects.
After security checks, passengers will proceed through Malaysian immigration, which will have around two dozen electronic gates alongside manual counters.
Passengers using the MyNIISe app will be able to clear the automated gates in as little as seven seconds.
They will then proceed to the second floor for Singapore immigration before reaching the third level to board trains bound for Woodlands North.
A joint monitoring room will allow Malaysian and Singaporean officers to coordinate responses to security incidents at the station.
RTS Operations (RTSO) chief executive officer Ahmad Marzuki Ariffin said the project would also have an operations control centre at Bukit Chagar to monitor train services and manage disruptions, alongside another centre at Woodlands North.
“This is one of the few projects with two operations control centres (for officials from both countries) to resolve issues in quick time,” he said.
The station will also be connected to surrounding areas through a 409-metre pedestrian linkway, giving passengers access to nearby shopping centres and other transport services.
The linkway will connect Bukit Chagar with malls including KOMTAR JBCC and Johor Bahru City Square, as well as JB Sentral.
From JB Sentral, passengers can connect to Malaysia’s Electric Train Service (ETS), including services to Kuala Lumpur and Penang.
Zulkifli said the pedestrian linkway was designed to distribute passenger flows and provide connections to other transport options.
“Passengers can use this to access ‘park and ride’ services as well as other rail services,” he said.
He added that sections connecting the station to nearby malls and JB Sentral were expected to be completed before the RTS Link begins operations in January 2027.
“The linkway will be able to disperse 10,000 passengers at any one time,” he said.
