Abolishing tolls would cost billions, says minister
PETALING JAYA : Abolishing tolls instead of deferring hikes may cost the government billions of ringgit in maintenance, says works minister Alexander Nanta Linggi.
Nanta said scrapping tolls was not a straightforward move, and that deferring increases was a more practical and realistic option.
Alexander Nanta Linggi.
He added that savings from not abolishing tolls could be redirected to benefit Malaysians in states without tolled highways such as Sabah, Sarawak, and Terengganu.
'It's not easy to abolish tolls because the government must find a huge sum for maintenance work if that happens.
'In my view, we don't need to abolish tolls for now. But if these (concession) companies have achieved their returns on investment, and if the toll rates are burdensome, then we can reduce them,' he said during ministerial question time in the Dewan Rakyat.
He did not specify the exact amount needed to abolish the tolls.
Nanta was responding to Che Mohamad Zulkifly Jusoh (PN–Besut), who asked what had happened to Pakatan Harapan's pledge to abolish tolls during the 15th general election.
He reiterated that the government was compensating highway concessionaries with RM568.92 million, or over half a billion ringgit. The deferral on 10 highways would also benefit about 941,000 users, he added.
'We hope this deferment will help ease the cost of living, especially for frequent highway users who commute to work each day,' he said.
The toll hike freeze was among the initiatives announced by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on July 23, as part of what he described as 'appreciation for Malaysians'.
The 10 highways involved in the deferment are the Cheras-Kajang Expressway (Grand Saga), KL-Kuala Selangor Expressway (LATAR), North Klang Straits Bypass (NNKSB), Senai-Desaru Expressway (SDE), East Coast Expressway Phase 2 (LPT2), South Klang Valley Expressway (SKVE), Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge (JSAHMS), Duta-Ulu Kelang Expressway (DUKE), KL-Putrajaya Expressway (MEX), and Butterworth Outer Ring Road (LLB).
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