Singapore will install a further 230 automated lanes at its border checkpoints this year, on top of the 160 added in 2023, said the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority on Tuesday (Feb 13).
This comes as Singapore saw 192.8 million travellers clearing its checkpoints in 2023, an increase of 84 percent or 88 million more people compared with 2022.
During the school and public holidays period, traveller volume at the land checkpoints exceeded pre-COVID levels, reaching about 440,000 daily, ICA said in its annual statistics report.
The installation of more lanes will cater to the increasing number of travellers, it said.
Immigration clearance will also be more seamless, with ICA to introduce its “next generation” Automated Border Control System (ABCS) this year.
The authority said it aims to allow all foreign visitors, regardless of nationality, to clear immigration using Singapore’s automated lanes without the need for prior enrolment.
These ABCS lanes, which will progressively replace the existing automated lanes and manual counters at all checkpoints, will provide Singapore residents and departing visitors with contactless clearance, meaning that they do not need to present their passports
Automated clearance has also become the default for bus travellers, with the installation of more than 90 automated lanes at the bus halls of Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints.
This has allowed ICA to clear about 8,500 travellers per hour during departure peak periods, as compared with 5,000 pre-pandemic.
As a result of faster clearance, ICA said more travellers are choosing to cross the Causeway by bus, with about 45 percent of travellers passing through Woodlands Checkpoint in December 2023 doing so.
Woodlands Checkpoint will be redeveloped in several phases over the next 10 to 15 years. Work is scheduled to begin in 2025 and once fully complete, the new checkpoint will be about five times the current size with ICA aiming to cut the average clearance time from one hour to 15 minutes during peak periods.
CNA
