Singapore’s Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said it wanted to reduce the clearance time at the checkpoint from one hour during pre-pandemic times to 15 minutes eventually.

According to Singapore’s The Straits Times, the ICA said travel volume at the checkpoint was at 90% of pre-pandemic levels on weekends, following the land border’s full reopening.

It also expected the daily average of travellers to return to 300,000 soon, and rise further.

“If the overall capacity is not increased, the travel time for vehicular traffic could increase by more than 60% to 70% during peak periods by 2050,” the ICA said.

ICA deputy commissioner Hsu Sin Yun said the checkpoint’s expansion would be done in phases over 10 to 15 years.

The first phase would see additional lanes for lorries and motorcycles, and subsequent phases would cover cars and buses.

An ICA spokesman said steps would be taken to ensure minimal disruption to checkpoint operations when expansion works begin, and a study was ongoing for an optimal design to clear heavy vehicles and motorcycles.

The ICA added that “flexi-lanes” capable of clearing cars or motorcycles would be incorporated, while vehicle checks would be conducted in an area away from the main area of the checkpoint to boost security.