Singapore and Malaysia mark 100 years of the Causeway
This year marks 100 years since the Johor-Singapore Causeway was officially opened. Stretching just over a kilometre, it is a symbol of close ties, bilateral relations and people-to-people connections. With Singapore and Malaysia expected to further improve connectivity and tighten business links, CNA's Leong Wai Kit looks at how the areas at both ends of the Causeway – Woodlands and Johor Bahru – are keeping up with the momentum.
Historic Causeway turning 100
The Causeway was officially opened on 28 June 1924
A major milestone will be celebrated this Friday with the Causeway marking its 100th year anniversary of its official opening. Local historian Associate Prof Datuk Dr Kassim Thukiman said the Causeway has played a major role in shaping up Johor and Singapore’s social economic development for a century.
He added that in the late 1800’s, Johor was the world’s top producer for gambier, pepper and rubber where the items were sent to Singapore before they were exported to Europe and China. “They were sent to Singapore using small boats across the Johor Straits. The channel then became congested. “In 1917, the British proposed to the Johor government to build a causeway linking Tanjung Puteri, now known as Johor Baru, and Singapore, where the project was approved some two years later,” he said here on Sunday. Kassim added the Johor government paid £15.4mil back then to help construct the Causeway, including the road, which allowed vehicles to transport people and goods.
He said based on historical facts, the Causeway was officially opened on June 28, 1924 by the Federated Malay States high commissioner Sir Lawrence Guillermard. It was witnessed by Johor Ruler Almarhum Sultan Sir Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Sir Abu Bakar as well as other Malay Rulers. “The Causeway connects the railway lines from Gemas to Johor Baru, then to Kranji and Keppel near Tanjong Pagar in Singapore. “People travelled along the road network between Johor Baru and Woodlands in the island republic while water was channelled from Gunung Pulai here to Singapore through pipes due to demand coming from there.”
Operation Snip Snip, half-tank rule among historical nuggets in Causeway centenary exhibition
The Causeway was officially opened on 28 Jun1924
As part of a 1970s campaign against “hippie culture” and its association with drug use, men with long hair, beards and floral shirts were denied entry into Singapore at the Woodlands Checkpoint. The country’s aversion to men with long hair then led to Operation Snip Snip, which saw long-haired men being refused entry into Singapore. Those who really wanted entry would get a quick haircut in Johor before crossing the Causeway.
This was one of the historical nuggets documented in a new travelling exhibition that marks the centenary of the Causeway, the land link used by more than 300,000 people travelling between Singapore and Malaysia each day. The Causeway: A Century Of Connections exhibition by the National Heritage Board (NHB) was launched by Culture, Community and Youth Minister Edwin Tong and Johor Chief Minister Onn Hafiz Ghazi at Woodlands Civic Centre on June 28.
Exactly 100 years ago on June 28, the Causeway was officially opened in 1924 by the Straits Settlements governor, Sir Laurence Guillemard, with Sultan Ibrahim of Johor gracing the ceremony. NHB’s exhibition traces the story of how the Causeway came to be and the milestones that followed, including its fate during crises such as World War II and its development alongside the post-war growth of the region. One historical nugget close to the hearts of motorists was the implementation of the “half-tank rule” of 1989. This required Singapore-registered vehicles to have at least half their fuel tanks filled, in a move to curb the Republic’s losses in fuel duties as motorists headed across the Causeway to buy cheaper petrol. This was revised to the “three-quarter tank rule” two years later.
‘Causeway a symbol of close M’sia-S’pore ties’
The Causeway is more than a bridge linking Singapore and Malaysia, but a symbol of the close relationship between both countries, says state exco member Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh. “With the Causeway coming to its 100th year soon, the anniversary celebration is a sign of the good relationship which exist between the governments of Johor and Singapore,” he said when contacted here yesterday.
Mohamad Fazli, who is also the Bukit Pasir assemblyman, said the Causeway will remain as an important channel to ferry goods and people between both countries. Asked on whether there are plans to upgrade the Causeway, including widening the 2.4km-long route, Mohamad Fazli said there are no plans to do so for now. “It depends on both Malaysia and Singapore governments if there is a need to upgrade the Causeway. “At present, we are waiting for the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) agreement to be signed in September,” said Mohamad Fazli, who is state works, transportation, infrastructure and communication committee chairman.
Under the leadership of Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi, the state government has been proactive in solving congestion issues at both land checkpoints here, especially at the Causeway. Frequent trips to Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine made by Onn Hafiz and his state executive councillors have help ease the congestion.
Malaysia-Singapore Causeway: Bridging borders 100 years on
The 1 km-long Causeway is one of the busiest border crossings in the world, with an average of 350,000 travellers daily
Every morning, two to three 40-foot trailers from Malaysian dairy producer Farm Fresh depart from farms in Kota Tinggi and Desaru, each delivering 18,000 litres of fresh milk to Singapore.
Founder and group managing director Loi Tuan Ee credits the Johor-Singapore Causeway – which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this month – for this seamless operation. “The proximity, easy accessibility and lower logistics costs enable us to send fresh milk to our Singaporean customers daily,” he told The Business Times.
The Malaysia-listed dairy producer, based in Johor, began exporting to Singapore six years ago. Today, the city state is its largest export market, contributing around 5 per cent of total sales.
100 Years of the Causeway
On 1 April 2022, the Causeway was fully reopened again, after almost two years of closure and restrictions
On 18 March 2020, the Causeway was shut down as Malaysia implemented its Movement Control Order (MCO) in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Only food supplies and other necessity goods were allowed to go through the Causeway.
A daily limit of almost 3,000 passengers were allowed to pass through the Causeway between the two countries under the Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) scheme. The Causeway is finally reopened after almost two years of closure and restrictions. It was the longest period of inaccessibility for the Causeway since the Second World War.
Despite decades of congestion woes, trafficking issues or an occasional tool used in political bickering, the Causeway remains an important link between Singapore and Malaysia.
Johor–Singapore Causeway
The Johor–Singapore Causeway is a 1.056-kilometre (0.66 mi) causeway consisting of a combined railway and motorway crossing that links the city of Johor Bahru in Malaysia across the Straits of Johor to the district and town of Woodlands in Singapore. It was the only land connection between the two from 1928 until 1998, when the Tuas Second Link opened.
The distance between Singapore's Woodlands Checkpoint and Malaysia's Bangunan Sultan Iskandar is approximately 2.4 km (1.5 mi). The causeway also serves as a water pipeline between the two countries. It is one of the busiest border crossings in the world, with 350,000 travellers daily. Many Malaysians continue to live in Malaysia and commute daily (with either public or private motorised transportation) to Singapore, enduring extremely long journey times with extreme heavy traffic congestion on weekdays.
The border is handled by immigration authorities of both countries at the Southern Integrated Gateway (Malaysia) and Woodlands Checkpoint (Singapore). Since 26 March 2022, both countries have permitted pedestrians to walk along the Causeway by foot but this is not common; pedestrian walking is generally limited to instances of standstill vehicular congestion on the Causeway which prevents passengers from boarding regular-hour cross-border public buses after clearing immigration.
The Johor-Singapore Causeway
The Johor-Singapore Causeway straddles the Straits of Johor between Johor Bahru city in the southern Malaysian state of Johor and the Woodlands district in northern Singapore. The idea for a land link between Singapore and what was then Malaya was mooted as early as 1898 in the Legislative Council and was strongly supported by Sir Frank Swettenham, Governor of the Straits Settlements (1901-1904).
However, construction of the causeway only began in 1919 and was finally completed in 1923 at a cost of $17 million. The 1,056-metre-long causeway, which had a two-track railway line, was opened first to goods trains in September 1923 and subsequently to passenger trains a month later. It was officially opened in June 1924 by Sir Laurence Guillemard, Governor of the Straits Settlements (1920-1927). The ferry service continued to be relied upon to transport people and vehicles across the straits until the causeway was later expanded to accommodate pedestrian and vehicular traffic.
In 1932, pipelines were added to the causeway to enable water to be transported between Johor and Singapore. Part of the causeway was blown up by retreating British forces in January 1942 to stall the Japanese advancement into Singapore. The causeway continues to serve as both a functional and symbolic link between Malaysia and Singapore.
