JOHOR BARU: The expansion of the Vaccinated Travel Lane for land crossings (VTL-Land) to all Malaysians and Singaporeans will bring Johor closer to a full economic recovery, say groups here.

       Johor Indian Muslim Entrepreneur Association secretary Hussein Ibrahim said the VTL-Land had already helped to spur the economy with many businesses finally seeing some improvement.

       “We are seeing positive signs in the past two months after the VTL-Land was implemented.

       “I believe we could see more improvements after Dec 20 as more people will be allowed to travel,” he said.

       He added that his own restaurant had seen an increase in sales of about 60% since the VTL-Land started.

       “The only problem now is the lack of manpower to manage the increase in customers.

       “I hope the government could speed up efforts to bring in more foreign workers,” he said.

       Johor Indian Petty Traders and Small Business Association chairman D. Ravindran said small businesses were expected to see better sales once the VTL-Land was opened to all categories of travellers. “For now, we do not really see significant changes as a majority of those coming here are workers in Singapore who are back to meet their families.

       “Many are also not from Johor Baru or even Johor and would go back to their hometowns.

       “However, once the Land-VTL is open to all categories, we may be able to see better results as there will be more people coming to shop or travel in Johor,” he said.

       Johor Tourist Guides Association chairman Jimmy Leong Wie Kong said the opening up of the VTL-Land to all categories of travellers was happening earlier than expected.

       “We did not expect this to happen this early. We thought such a move would only be made next year.

       “It is definitely a welcome move. However, it will take some time for the tourism sector to really benefit as we expect those coming here to still be Malaysians who are returning to meet their families,” he said.

       Tourism Johor director Suhairi Hashim said the tourism sector here was currently doing well lately with hotels in Johor achieving 70% take up rate since November.

       “Local tourism activities have been increasing in the past two months, especially with the holiday season.

       “I believe that with the new development on the VTL-Land, we will slowly be able to see more Singaporean tourists coming back to visit their favourite destinations such as Johor Baru, Kota Tinggi, Mersing and Kukup in Pontian,” he said.

       On Tuesday, it was announced that all Malaysian and Singaporean citizens would be able to cross the border via the VTL-Land from Dec 20.

       However, the International Trade and Industry Ministry said travellers were still required to be fully vaccinated and for unvaccinated children below the age of 12 to be be accompanied by fully vaccinated parents or guardians.

       “Eligible travellers will be subjected to Covid-19 testing and further health requirements determined by the respective country.

       “The VTL-Land will still be limited to only bus transportation,” the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

       When the VTL-Land was first launched on Nov 29, entry into was limited to Malaysians, permanent residents and long-term pass holders.

       Entry into Singapore via VTL-Land was for Singapore citizens, permanent residents and long-term pass holders.