THE success of the Johor Baru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) depends on the speed of custom and immigration clearance, said former prime minister Najib Razak.

According to Najib, despite a short journey time, the government must work to speed up the current customs and immigration clearance, which he said was disappointing.

“The government’s announcement last week that RTS passengers, whose journey time is only five minutes, still need another 10-15 minutes for the customs clearance and immigration process is quite disappointing.

“When the BN government first planned the RTS and HSR (which was cancelled by the Perikatan Nasional government), we also agreed with Singapore to facilitate the customs and immigration process so that the release process for the two countries would be integrated,” he said in a Facebook post today.

The RTS link railway, connecting Bukit Chagar in Johor Baru and Woodlands in Singapore is about 4km long but when completed will take travellers from one country to another in just five minutes, plus another 10 minutes of formalities.

With a capacity of up to 10,000 passengers an hour in each direction, the RTS Link is expected to carry up to 300,000 passengers a day.

During peak hours, trains will commute at an interval of 3.6 minutes.

Najib said, with rapidly evolving technological systems, the clearance process could be accelerated while lowering any potential security risks.

“Now the facial recognition system is becoming more sophisticated.

“Apple’s Face ID system for iPhone has also achieved an accuracy rate of 99.9999%, which is the rate of one error for every million faces recognised.

“When paired with immigration contact cards specifically for frequent visitors, the risk is extremely low,” he said.

The Pekan MP also said that the government need not wait until the RTS starts operating as the technology is already in existence and that they should have bilateral discussion with their neighbours to create the new system as soon as possible.

“At the very least, the governments of Singapore and Malaysia can start registering immigration cardholders and owners within six months before the RTS starts operating to ensure the success of the RTS.

“If you want to be faster, the contact card can also be used as an RTS ticket card so that customs and immigration can be released while boarding the train,” he said.

First announced in 2010, the rail link project was initially targeted to be ready by 2018. A new starting date of end-2024 was agreed in 2017 and both countries signed a deal the following year, with construction due to start in 2019.

The project stalled after the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government came to power in Malaysia in May 2018. Putrajaya requested a six-month suspension so it could review the scope, structure and costs.

The project is now slated to be completed by end 2026.

Najib said the link, which he initially negotiated, agreed and launched was to boost development in Johor but now accuses PH of stifling progress.

Hence, he said that to ensure the success of the RTS project, the government must co-operate by simplifying the customs and immigration process for consumers. – February 22, 2021.