JB Sentral, CIQ and RTS: How JB’s Transport Hub Fits Together

JB Sentral and the RTS are often mentioned in the same breath, along with the JB CIQ, but many buyers and visitors are not sure how the three actually fit together. Are they one building or three? Which one do you use to drive, to take the train to Kuala Lumpur, or to ride the RTS Link to Singapore? This guide explains Johor Bahru’s transport hub piece by piece: what each part does, how they connect on foot, what is being added before and after the RTS opens, and why the hub makes nearby homes such as Causewayz Square in JB City Centre so well connected.

If you want the RTS basics first, see what the RTS Link is. For a detailed look at the new station alone, read our Bukit Chagar RTS station guide. This article focuses on how the whole hub works together.

JB Sentral, CIQ and RTS at a glance

The hub has three main parts, all in the Bukit Chagar area of central Johor Bahru. Each serves a different kind of journey, and walkways link them together.

JB Sentral and the BSI CIQ were built together as the Southern Integrated Gateway, a project that also included a pedestrian bridge to City Square, a flyover to the Johor Bahru Inner Ring Road and the Eastern Dispersal Link highway to the North–South Expressway near Pandan. The RTS station is the newest addition, built on the Bukit Chagar side of the same area.

What is JB Sentral?

JB Sentral is Johor Bahru’s main railway station and its biggest public transport interchange. It opened on 21 October 2010, replacing the old Johor Bahru railway station about 200 m to the south.

Rail services at JB Sentral

• KTM ETS: Since 12 December 2025, ETS electric trains run all the way from KL Sentral to JB Sentral on the new Gemas–Johor Bahru electrified double track, cutting the KL–JB journey from about seven hours to about four hours 20 minutes.
• KTM Komuter (Southern Sector): Commuter trains on the Paloh–JB Sentral line serve towns north of the city.
• Shuttle Tebrau: The current rail shuttle to Woodlands Train Checkpoint in Singapore. Under the bilateral agreement, KTMB services into Singapore will cease within six months of the RTS Link starting passenger service.
• Ekspres Rakyat Timuran: The long-distance service to Tumpat on the east coast terminates here.

Buses at JB Sentral

The bus terminal on the Jalan Jim Quee side serves local routes to places such as Kulai, Skudai, Pasir Gudang, Kota Tinggi and Larkin Sentral, BAS.MY routes, and cross-border buses from Singapore including routes 160, 170X and 950. This makes JB Sentral the natural first and last stop for many people crossing by bus.

What is the JB CIQ (Bangunan Sultan Iskandar)?

The JB CIQ is the Malaysian checkpoint for everyone crossing the Causeway by road, whether by car, motorcycle, bus or on foot. Officially called Bangunan Sultan Iskandar (BSI), it opened to road traffic on 16 December 2008 and was named after Sultan Iskandar ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail.

BSI connects to JB Sentral by a walkway over Jalan Jim Quee, so bus passengers and pedestrians can move between the checkpoint and the station without crossing roads. On the Singapore side, the matching road checkpoint is Woodlands, which handles about 300,000 travellers a day and up to 340,000 on long weekends, according to Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs. Since January 2025, Singapore has fully implemented QR code clearance at Woodlands and Tuas.

The BSI CIQ will keep operating after the RTS opens. Cars, motorcycles, lorries and most cross-border buses will continue to use it, while the RTS gives passengers on foot a rail alternative.

Where does the RTS Bukit Chagar station fit in?

The RTS Link’s Johor terminal is at Bukit Chagar, on Jalan Tun Abdul Razak, right next to JB Sentral. It is the newest piece of the hub and the one that changes cross-border travel the most.

• Route: Bukit Chagar to Woodlands North in about 5 minutes, crossing the Straits of Johor on a bridge about 25 m high.
• Capacity: Up to 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction, with trains about every 3.6 minutes at peak. See our RTS Link capacity guide.
• Co-located CIQ: You clear both countries’ immigration at the departure station and walk straight out on arrival. See how RTS customs works.
• Timeline: Final tests and trial runs are expected to finish by 31 December 2026, with passenger service targeted for February 2027, subject to independent safety certification and regulatory approval (LTA–MOT, 2 Oct 2026).
• Fare: Not yet announced. See our RTS fare guide.

Woodlands North station in Singapore links with the Thomson–East Coast Line, so an RTS trip can continue directly onto Singapore’s MRT network.

How do JB Sentral, CIQ and RTS connect on foot?

All three are linked by covered walkways, so you can move between them without a car. The main connections are short and largely weather-protected.

The practical result is that someone arriving from Kuala Lumpur on the ETS can walk from the JB Sentral platforms to the RTS and be in Singapore within minutes of clearing immigration, without touching the Causeway road.

What is being added to the hub around the RTS opening?

Malaysia is upgrading the area so the RTS can work at full capacity. MRT Corp has said the RTS Link “was never conceived as a standalone service”, and the plan is to turn Bukit Chagar into an integrated transport hub with partners including the Transport Ministry, the Johor state government, PAJ, APAD and BSI management.

1. More buses: More than 250 additional buses are expected by 2027 for first- and last-mile connections, with the Stage Bus Service Transformation 2.0 adding buses serving residential areas around Johor Bahru and Bukit Chagar.
2. Park-and-ride: A 1,500-bay facility at Bukit Chagar with standard and premium parking, plus 700 RTS-designated bays at Coronation Square. Our RTS parking guide has more.
3. Komuter bridge: The RM60 million bridge giving Komuter passengers direct access to the RTS station.
4. ART stop: The planned Johor Autonomous Rapid Transit has a Bukit Chagar station site identified, directly connected to the RTS Link.
5. Bukit Chagar TOD: A transit-oriented development around the station, expected to still be under construction when the RTS opens.
6. Traffic dispersal plan: Federal and Johor authorities are drawing up a plan to manage city-centre traffic as travel patterns shift.

Which part of the hub should you use?

The right choice depends on where you are going and how you are travelling. This quick guide covers the most common journeys.

• To Singapore on foot, after Feb 2027: RTS Bukit Chagar. One clearance point, about 5 minutes across.
• To Singapore by car or motorcycle: BSI CIQ via the Causeway, or the Second Link in the west.
• To Singapore by cross-border bus: JB Sentral bus terminal and BSI CIQ.
• To Kuala Lumpur or other Malaysian cities by train: JB Sentral, ETS.
• To suburbs around JB: JB Sentral for KTM Komuter and local buses.
• Shopping or dining in the city centre: Walk from JB Sentral to City Square.

For door-to-door commute comparisons, see our guide to the JB to Singapore commute.

How JB’s transport hub grew: a short timeline

The hub has been built up in stages over almost two decades, with each step adding a new way to travel. Seeing the sequence helps explain why the area is so well connected today.

Each stage has strengthened the role of the Bukit Chagar area as Johor Bahru’s gateway, both to Singapore and to the rest of Malaysia.

Practical tips for using the hub

A little planning makes the hub easy to use, especially in the first months after the RTS opens.

• Follow signs for your mode: RTS for the train to Woodlands North, BSI or CIQ for road crossings and cross-border buses, and JB Sentral for ETS, Komuter and local buses.
• Allow extra time in the early weeks: New walkways and station layouts take getting used to, and some construction around the Bukit Chagar TOD is expected to continue after opening.
• Prepare clearance in advance: Carry your passport and set up any QR code apps before you arrive.
• Use City Square as a landmark: The mall is linked to JB Sentral by walkway and is a convenient meeting point.

Why the transport hub matters for property nearby

Few places in Malaysia combine intercity rail, commuter rail, buses, a road border crossing and a cross-border metro within a few hundred metres. Homes within walking distance of this hub can reach Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and the rest of Johor without a car, which is a strong own-stay and rental point.

Causewayz Square (Exsim CIQ)

Causewayz Square, often called the Exsim CIQ project or searched as “Causeway Square JB”, is on Jalan Lumba Kuda in Tanjung Puteri. It is about 600 m from the BSI CIQ, about 800 m from the RTS Bukit Chagar station and about 1.3 km from JB Sentral. The development is freehold, with four towers (Axis, Brixton, Coven and Dover), about 90,000 sq ft of podium retail and target completion around 2030. A pedestrian link to the CIQ and RTS has been proposed by the developer. Our walking guide from Causewayz Square to the CIQ and RTS shows the routes.

The Asteriaz and The Celestz

In Kebun Teh, The Asteriaz and The Celestz are about a 10-minute drive (around 3.2 km) from the CIQ, and a shuttle to the CIQ and RTS has been proposed. They are not walkable to the RTS, but the hub is a short drive away for residents.

Historically, homes near major transport interchanges have tended to attract steady tenant interest from commuters and visitors, though results depend on supply and pricing. Explore JB condos near the RTS Link, or WhatsApp us for the latest SPA price list for Causewayz Square, The Asteriaz and The Celestz.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Johor Bahru Sentral station
• Wikipedia: Southern Integrated Gateway
• FMT: ETS3 fully operational, bringing JB closer to KL (Dec 2025)
• NST/Bernama: RTS Link to boost Johor Baru–Singapore connectivity (Mar 2026)
• EdgeProp: RM60m bridge between Bukit Chagar RTS and KTM Komuter (Aug 2026)
• LTA: RTS Link service targeted for February 2027
• MHA Singapore: Woodlands Checkpoint daily travellers
• MOT Singapore: Shuttle Tebrau after RTS Link commencement

This guide is general information, not financial advice.