Heavy traffic at Causeway from JB to S'pore at 3:30am on Monday

Travellers who were heading from Johor Bahru, Malaysia to Singapore found themselves caught in a jam — at around 3am on Monday (Dec. 29).

The snaking queue stretched the full length of the Causeway.

Photos and videos of the early morning queue of vehicles heading back to Singapore were shared online.

A video shot from a building in Johor near the Causeway showed the full extent of the jam.

Traffic in the other direction from Singapore to Johor was clear at that time.

Another photo showed the situation on the ground.

An app that provides the estimated travelling time from Johor to Singapore via the Causeway indicated that it would take between 1.5 to two hours at around 3:40am.

Arrival traffic subsided at around 4:30am

Mothership understands that the heavy arrival traffic subsided at about 4:30am.

The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) previously mentioned in its recent travel advisory that travellers should expect continuous heavy traffic at the land checkpoints during the festive season.

Contrary to rumours online, it is understood that no enhanced security checks were taking place at the time.

High demand for private-hire vehicles

The high volume of early morning travellers provided an income opportunity for private-hire vehicle drivers.

Jobs offered on the Gojek ride-hailing app that morning showed dynamic surge pricing kicking in.

A 4:51am ride from Woodlands Checkpoint to two drop-off points in Sengkang and Hougang was priced at S$50.93.

Other jobs showed similarly higher surge pricing fares.

Reasons for jam

Commenters online offered a few explanations for the heavy traffic.

One commenter said it could be due to Malaysians returning to Singapore for work at the tail-end of the festive period where most people are back from their break.

Another commenter posited that the last weekend of the year is usually when those in Singapore make one last hurrah for Johor before the new school year begins.

Many of those who visit Johor on Sunday or over the weekend were also likely to have maximised their time in Malaysia and opted to travel back to Singapore later, which resulted in the congestion.

Top photos via Xiao Pang Boon