Driver urged to use designated lanes

Berita Harian

3 Oct 2008

We refer to the letter 'Baffled by ICA's confusing instructions' by Ms Linda Salleh (BH 3rd Sep).

Under the Road Traffic Act (Cap 276), it is an offence for any person driving a vehicle who fails to conform to the indication given by a traffic sign placed on a road. Based on the road markings leading to the land checkpoints, motor vehicles which are registered as cars are thus required to approach the car lanes for clearance.

We seek the public's continued co-operation that all Singapore vehicles registered as cars should approach the car lanes for clearance at the checkpoints.

Mrs Ong-Kong Yong Sin
Senior Public & Internal Communications Executive
Immigration & Checkpoints Authority



Baffled by ICA’s confusing instructions

Berita Harian

3 Sept 2008

We own a 12-seater van and never had problems entering Malaysia through the bus lane at Woodlands checkpoint.

Lately however, we have been asked to use the car lane on the grounds that our van uses a private license plate number.

On 2nd Aug, we queued at the car lane with our eight passengers, when an ICA officer advised us to use the bus bay upon our return.

This was because of the number of passengers in our van, which could prolong the checks and delay the other cars in the queue.

On 20th Aug at about 11 pm, I went to Johore Bahru with my husband and joined the queue at the car zone. After an hour of waiting, a warden arrived and directed us to the bus bay.

Although we explained our previous encounter, the officer maintained that we use the bus bay.

At the immigration counter, Staff Sergeant Padnini Baskaran made some insinuations and questioned as to why we still used the bus bay when in fact we were using a van with a private license plate.

Despite our explanation that we had been instructed by the traffic warden earlier to use the bus bay, she maintained that we should have gone by the car zone notwithstanding the instruction from the traffic warden.

She then took a statement from my husband and added that it would be the final warning.

The following day on 21st Aug at about 8.35 pm, we entered Johore in a group of six via the car zone.

At the immigration counter, the ICA officer instructed my husband to park the van and report to the nearby office.

The reason given was that my husband had failed to queue in the right lane as he should have queued at the bus lane and not the car!

This really confuses us as we do not know when this muddle would end.

Why are there differing instructions among ICA officers themselves? Which should be the correct lane for our van?

We are disappointed with the warning that my husband received especially after we had obeyed the instructions from the officers concerned.

The officer’s attitude in making insinuations also shows a lack of professionalism in carrying out her duties.

We hope the ICA authorities will be able to help us and end this game of ‘ping-pong’

Linda Salleh