SINGAPORE: All new ticket sales for vaccinated travel lane (VTL) flights and buses will be frozen from Dec 23 to Jan 20 next year, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Wednesday (Dec 22).
The move is to limit Singapore's exposure to imported Omicron COVID-19 cases, said the ministry.
All travellers who already hold a ticket on a VTL flight or bus and meet all other VTL requirements can continue to travel under the quarantine-free travel scheme.
MOH will also temporarily reduce the VTL quotas and ticket sales for travel after Jan 20, 2022. It will continue to monitor developments closely and update this policy as the situation changes.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) will provide further details for the VTL-Air, and the Ministry of Trade & Industry (MTI) for the VTL-Land.
In a press release on Wednesday, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said that it would temporarily reduce the capacity and ticket sales for travel into Singapore or Malaysia via VTL (Land) from Jan 21, 2022 by half - the equivalent of 24 one-way bus rides per day.
MTI said it would continue to monitor the situation closely and adjust the VTL (Land) capacity, taking into account the public health situation in both countries and globally.
No new VTL (Land) bus tickets will be sold for travel into Singapore or Malaysia from 11.59pm on Dec 22, 2021, to 11.59pm on Jan 20, 2022.
"We are picking up more Omicron cases because of the rapid spread of the variant across many countries/regions. Thus far, our enhanced testing regime for travellers has helped us to detect 65 confirmed Omicron cases," said MOH.
"With aggressive contact tracing and ringfencing measures, we have, for now, been able to limit onward community transmission. But it is a matter of time before the Omicron variant spreads in our community."
Singapore's border measures will help to buy the country time to study and understand the Omicron variant, and to strengthen its defences, including enhancing its healthcare capacity, and getting more people vaccinated and boosted, it said.
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The move is to limit Singapore's exposure to imported Omicron COVID-19 cases, said the ministry.
All travellers who already hold a ticket on a VTL flight or bus and meet all other VTL requirements can continue to travel under the quarantine-free travel scheme.
MOH will also temporarily reduce the VTL quotas and ticket sales for travel after Jan 20, 2022. It will continue to monitor developments closely and update this policy as the situation changes.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) will provide further details for the VTL-Air, and the Ministry of Trade & Industry (MTI) for the VTL-Land.
In a press release on Wednesday, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said that it would temporarily reduce the capacity and ticket sales for travel into Singapore or Malaysia via VTL (Land) from Jan 21, 2022 by half - the equivalent of 24 one-way bus rides per day.
MTI said it would continue to monitor the situation closely and adjust the VTL (Land) capacity, taking into account the public health situation in both countries and globally.
No new VTL (Land) bus tickets will be sold for travel into Singapore or Malaysia from 11.59pm on Dec 22, 2021, to 11.59pm on Jan 20, 2022.
"We are picking up more Omicron cases because of the rapid spread of the variant across many countries/regions. Thus far, our enhanced testing regime for travellers has helped us to detect 65 confirmed Omicron cases," said MOH.
"With aggressive contact tracing and ringfencing measures, we have, for now, been able to limit onward community transmission. But it is a matter of time before the Omicron variant spreads in our community."
Singapore's border measures will help to buy the country time to study and understand the Omicron variant, and to strengthen its defences, including enhancing its healthcare capacity, and getting more people vaccinated and boosted, it said.
Continue reading...