During the Japanese Occupation (1942–45), the Causeway played a significant role in shaping Singapore’s history. Being a vital link between the island of Singapore and the Malay Peninsula, the Causeway became a strategic asset for the Japanese invasion. The Japanese military made use of it to transport troops, equipment and supplies between Singapore and the rest of Malaya, facilitating their efforts to fortify their positions and maintain control over the occupied territories.
On 31 January 1942, after the last British troops had crossed the Causeway to Singapore, Allied engineers set off two explosions on it to slow down the Japanese advancement into Singapore. The first destroyed the lock’s lift-bridge1, while the second caused a 21-metre gap in the structure.
Despite the disruptions caused by the Japanese Occupation, the people in Singapore continued to use the Causeway for essential travel and trade to the extent possible. While the Occupation years imposed restrictions and changes to daily life, the Causeway remained a resilient link between Singapore and the Malay Peninsula, and contributed to the eventual recovery after the war. Traffic on the Causeway surged after the war, as thousands of vehicles crossed the straits daily, with even greater numbers during holidays and festive seasons2.
This section features materials pertaining to the Causeway, particularly during the Japanese Occupation period. These diverse sources offer glimpses of the Causeway at the time as well as personal accounts of those who had lived through the war.
1. The lock channel allow passage for small craft up to 120 feet in length, a beam of 24 feet and a draft of 10 feet and 6 inches, as well as a rolling lift-bridge to carry the roadway and railway across the lock.
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Photographs
Media - Image No: 20080000057 – 0057
Source: Courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
Updated with contribution from Malcolm Wilton-Jones on 16 March 2021
A breach was made in the Causeway by the retreating British troops on 31 January 1942.
Covering Date: 31 Jan 1942-18 Feb 1942
Media - Image No: 20060000785 – 0011
Source: Lim Kheng Chye
A gap can be seen at the Causeway after an explosion set off by the British at 8.15 am, in an attempt to stop Japanese troops from crossing over to Singapore.
Covering Date: 31 Jan 1942
Media - Image No: 20060000785 - 0012
Source: Lim Kheng Chye
The Koneo imperial guards division of the Japanese army under Lieutenant-General Nishimura crossing the Causeway into Singapore after constructing a girder bridge over the gap.
Covering Date: Feb 1942
Media - Image No: 19980005038 - 0095
Source: Roland Craske
People picking up debris at part of the blown-up Causeway linking Singapore to Johor Bahru in Malaya in 1945.
Covering Date: Aug 1945
Media - Image No: 19980005038 - 0094
Source: Roland Craske
A building at the end of the Causeway where Japanese atrocities were carried out.
Covering Date: 1946
Audiovisual Recordings
Compilation Of World War II Footage 1941-1945
Date: 1941-1945
Source: Footage Farm Ltd
Timestamp: 30:13 - 30:29
Footage from a Japanese news report on the fall of Singapore. The scene starts with the destroyed Causeway seen from the Johor side, then pans to show thick black smoke billowing from the Singapore side.
Oral History Interviews
Accession Number 000134, Track 1
Interview with Charles Donald Lee
Charles Donald Lee was seconded to a New South Wales infantry battalion to defend the area around the Causeway. Listen to him recall what he was doing prior to the blowing up of the Causeway.
Accession Number 000261, Track 3
Interview with Edward Scully
Edward Scully, who was a Private in the Federated Malay States (F.M.S) Volunteer Forces, talked about the phase withdrawal of Allied troops to Singapore and later the blowing up of the Johor end of the Causeway.
Accession Number 000205, Track 4
Interview with Stanley Warren
Stanley Warren, Observation post assistant, 344 Battalion, 135th Regiment, Royal Artillery, described how his battalion tried to deter the Japanese troops from crossing the Causeway to Singapore.
Accession Number 000182, Track 4
Interview with Yeoh Seang Aun
Yeoh Seang Aun, Deputy Director, Medical Services, Ministry of Health, recalled how he and a group of seven others journeyed from Woodlands to the Causeway in hope of the returning to Malaysia because of the fear and uncertainties they faced during the Japanese Occupation.
Accession Number 000183, Track 1
Interview with Philip Carlyle Marcus
Philip Carlyle Marcus, Senior Assistant Treasurer, Municipal Council, recalled his first encounter with Japanese troops and his involvement in the repair of damaged water mains at the Causeway.
Accession Number 000546, Track 58
Interview with Mohinder Singh
Mohinder Singh, a letter writer and teacher, recalled what the Causeway and the area around it was like during the Japanese Occupation.
Accession Number 000248, Track 5
Interview with Chan Cheng Yean
Chan Cheng Yean, a clerk, and also a Member of the Malacca Volunteer Corps who was later sent to Singapore in the 1940s, recalled how he witnessed Japanese soldiers disguised as civilians to cross the Causeway, and what the Japanese soldiers did to prevent the Japanese from reaching Singapore.
Accession Number 000195, Track 4
Interview with Taman bin Haji Sanusi
Taman bin Haji Sanusi, a wireless operator in the Johor Military Forces, talked about the Japanese atrocities he witnessed at the Causeway and in Johor.