Singapore and Malaysia to launch VTL across the Causeway from Nov 29

THE Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) across the Causeway between Singapore and Malaysia, to be launched on Nov 29, will be open to citizens, permanent residents or long-term pass holders of the country they are entering.

This is to give priority to those who have been working in either country to visit their families. In the first phase, travellers will have to travel on designated VTL buses.

The 2 designated buses entering Singapore via the Causeway are Transtar Travel and Handal Indah (also known as Causeway Link). Both will operate 32 daily designated trips each (16 trips from Malaysia to Singapore and vice versa) and the maximum capacity for each bus is 45 fully seated passengers per trip. This translates to up to 2,880 travellers each day.

Bus tickets will go on sale on Nov 25 at 8 am. Tickets are priced at S$15 and S$8 for adults and children respectively per trip into Malaysia, and RM20 (S$6.50) and RM10 for adult and children respectively into Singapore, regardless of the bus operator used. Travellers are required to purchase their bus tickets at least 3 days before departure.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said: "Malaysia is Singapore's closest neighbour and the 2 countries share deep and warm relations. The Causeway was one of the busiest land borders in the world before the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted our cross-border activities. The launch of the VTL (Land) is a big step towards reconnecting our people and economies, and will further enhance our bilateral relationship."

Travellers looking to enter Singapore under the VTL (Land) arrangement must be a Singapore citizen, Singapore permanent resident or a holder of a Singapore-issued long-term pass. In-principle approval holders of long-term passes and foreign short term visitors are currently not eligible to travel.

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In addition, they must have remained in Malaysia, or any other VTL or Category 1 country/region in the last 14 consecutive days before arrival in Singapore.

Travellers must be fully vaccinated and test negative in a valid pre-departure Covid-19 Antigen Rapid Test (ART) or Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test within 2 calendar days before departure for Singapore.

Unvaccinated travellers who are aged 12 and below can travel to Singapore if accompanied by a fully vaccinated VTL traveller.

All travellers are also required to submit the SG Arrival Card with electronic health declaration via the ICA website or through the SG Arrival Card mobile application at least 3 days before their arrival.

The 2 countries aim to expand the VTL (Land) to include more travellers, including general travellers. Steps will subsequently be taken to restore travel through Tuas Second Link.

Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong said: "We are starting the VTL (Land) in a safe and calibrated manner, so that we can progress smoothly. We seek the understanding of workers who may not be able to purchase a bus ticket to travel home immediately due to limited capacity in the initial phase of the launch. We will continue to work with Malaysia to expand the VTL (Land) arrangement to more travellers in the coming weeks."

A trial run was conducted on Tuesday (Nov 23) morning to test out the protocols, which enabled the authorities to refine the  processes before the launch.