Malaysian man sheds tears of joy after driving across Causeway for the first time in 2 years

It was the first time that he'd driven across the Causeway in two years, but it's a trip he'd gladly take every day now in order to be with his family. The emotional moment even made the Malaysian shed tears of joy.

The man, surnamed Hou, recorded his entire journey which began on Thursday (March 31), just before the Causeway reopened at midnight on April 1.

The 54-year-old foreman at a stainless steel factory shared with Chinese-language publication 8world that he has been working in Singapore for the past 25 years. Before the pandemic, he used to commute daily between his home in Johor Bahru (JB) and Singapore. Hou has been putting up at his company's dormitory for the past two years ever since the restriction of travel between the two countries.

Asked why he wanted to be the first to cross the Causeway, Hou said: "On March 17, 2020 I drove my car into Singapore before the lights went out at the land border checkpoint. On April 1, 2022 I want to drive in to Malaysia on the day the lights are turned on again."

Noting that the closure of the border crossings had been unprecedented, Hou said he wished to "witness the historic moment" of the checkpoints reopening once again. 

So excited was Hou by the prospect of finally being able to drive home that at around eight-plus on Friday night, he headed to the road which connects to the Causeway to "familiarise himself with the route and to check if there were police there to control the traffic". "After all, it's been two years," he added.

He'd initially planned to have supper and chat till 11pm with friends, but made the decision to leave earlier as he had heard lanes were already opening up to motorists at Tuas Checkpoint.

When he drove to Kranji road which leads to the Woodlands Causeway, there was already a long line of cars waiting to make the journey into Malaysia.

The line eventually began moving at 11.45pm. Hou added that the queue at the immigration checkpoint took only 25 minutes, which was "quicker than I thought".

He reasoned that it may be because his Malaysian-registered vehicle could be one of the few left in Singapore during the pandemic.

The moment he crossed the Causeway and made it into Johor, Hou said that his tears flowed.

"You cannot imagine the feeling of being so close to home yet not being able to return," said Hou, who reached home at around 1am.

He woke his wife up and they spent some time chatting before falling asleep.

Hou told 8world the next day: "My wife said I can continue to stay in the dormitory if I'm too tired to drive across the Causeway daily, but home is still the best. I can see my kids grow up and I have my wife beside me. We could finally have breakfast together this morning."

After breakfast, Hou made the drive back across the Causeway to Singapore for work. He said the immigration clearance took only five minutes. He attributed the smooth traffic to the fact that it may take a few days for Malaysian-registered vehicles to secure a Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) to enter Singapore. "My car was always in Singapore so I could drive in," Hou said, sharing that some of his friends had tried to enter but were forced to turn back as they didn't have the required permit.

candicecai@asiaone.com