In Cars, Local News / By Gerard Lye / 5 January 2016 4:08 pm / 33 comments

It has been revealed that by the end of 2016, all 21 toll plazas in the Klang Valley are expected to be fully electronic, the Association of Malaysian Highway Concessionaires announced. The New Straits Times reports that the move is aimed at boosting efficiency and comfort for highway users.

“At manual collection toll booths, an average of 360 collections can be made per hour compared to 1,000 collections via Smart Tag,” the association’s president Datuk Zainudin A. Kadir said. He reiterated that from January 13, 2016, 10 toll plazas on four highways in the Klang Valley will only accept electronic toll collection (ETC) via PLUSMiles cards, Touch ‘n Go cards and SmartTags.

As a recap, the 10 affected toll plazas, which will follow a ETC system from said date, are located along the Maju Expressway (MEX), New Pantai Expressway (NPE), Cheras-Kajang Highway (Grand Saga) and the Kemuning Shah Alam Expressway (LKSA).

Zainudin added that once the ETC comes into effect on the initial 10 toll plazas, a 10% rebate will be offered to Class One vehicle users for two months, between January 13 and March 12, facilitated by the MEX, NPE, LKSA and Grand Saga concessionaries.

The adoption of a ETC system will also have no impact on the current staff of toll collectors, according to Zainudin, who stated that they would be redeployed to other tasks instead of facing retrenchment.

What do you think of this move by the Association of Malaysian Highway Concessionaires? Will it help ease the congestion experienced at toll booths in the Klang Valley? With this announcement, it’s best that you keep your PLUSMiles cards, Touch ‘n Go cards and SmartTags at the ready while on the road, and ensure that there is sufficient credit loaded into them.