According to documents sighted by The Straits Times, Singapore’s transport ministry was also looking to acquire a tracking system that could track a maximum of 2,000 vehicles at any point in time.

The system would be used to track people driving into Singapore through its checkpoints as they head to the parking facility which is near the Bukit Batok Flyover.

A transport ministry spokesman said this designated facility would help ease Malaysian travellers entering Singapore with their own vehicles before they proceed to serve their stay-home notice (SHN).

The spokesman added that currently, travellers were allowed to park at their places of accommodation or workplace before proceeding to serve their SHN.

According to Singapore’s health ministry’s risk classification framework, Malaysia is classified as a Category 4 country which means that Malaysians coming in would have to serve a 10-day SHN at a designated facility.

Despite this, The Straits Times reported that the tender documents did not mention whether this new facility would affect border measures.

According to another set of tender documents issued by Singapore’s transport ministry on Thursday, it was found that the contractor for the designated parking facility would need to set up a temporary hoarding area, as well as two processing centres.

“One will be for arriving passengers, while the other will be for passengers who have completed their SHN and are collecting their vehicles,” it said, adding that the facility would be operated round-the-clock.

The ministry added the contractor should ensure that a parking lot would be allocated to the arriving motorists who can only park at the designated lot.

“Officers deployed at the parking facility will have to wear N95 masks, latex gloves, surgical gowns and either a face shield or safety goggles. They will also need to be vaccinated and take routine Covid-19 tests,” it said.

According to Malaysian foreign minister Saifuddin Abdullah, Malaysia and Singapore have been discussing the possibility of reopening their borders soon.

“I understand that the health minister had discussions recently with his Singapore counterpart via phone on a proposal to reopen the border between Singapore and Malaysia,” he told the Dewan Rakyat in his winding-up speech on the King’s address last month.

He hoped that this matter could be resolved soon because both countries needed the border reopening. He said Putrajaya could also explore the idea of reopening Malaysia’s borders with other countries, such as Thailand.