JOHOR BARU, MALAYSIA: The new Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complex is expected to cut traffic congestion on the Causeway by more than half.

Johor Immigration director Mohd Nasri Ishak said the new complex was designed for smoother traffic flow to and from Singapore.

"Traffic congestion has always been a major problem at the Causeway. We hope that with the new building, some of the traffic woes can be solved," he said at the complex here yesterday.

He said operations at the building would be eased in two phases.

Under Phase One, which started at 12.01am yesterday, inbound passengers were routed through the new building after immigration clearance at the old Causeway checkpoint.

Mohd Nasri said for the next two weeks, they would monitor traffic flow to uncover hiccups, if any.

Phase Two would begin on Dec 16, with both inbound and outbound vehicles directed to the building.

"We have assigned personnel to control traffic as the people may not be familiar with the new building. Everything is running smoothly so far," Mohd Nasri said, adding that about 1,500 Immigration personnel have been assigned to the building.

After a delay of over a year, Sultan of Johor Sultan Iskandar Sultan Ismail launched the building on Monday.

Sultan Iskandar, after whom the building is named, said the launch marked a historic day for the state, as the facility would function as the main southern gateway to Johor.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who was at the launch, said nine million people were expected to use the facilities each year.