Electronic toll collection system to be rolled out

It's electronic payment or bust.

KUALA LUMPUR: Some 8,000 government emergency services vehicles will be fitted with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) devices in a trial run to prepare for a gateless gantry system for electronic toll collection.

Works Minister Datuk Seri Fadhillah Yusof said highway concessionaires will bear the cost of installing the devices in police cars, fire department trucks, ambulances and other emergency services vehicles.

The gateless gantry toll system is expected to be introduced in stages nationwide sometime next year.

The RFID system is being tested at the Ampang-Kuala Lumpur Elevated Highway, Elite Expressway and New Klang Valley Expressway.

He said the new system can help reduce congestion at major toll booths.

Fadhillah was speaking after opening the RM1.183bil 9km Tun Razak Link at Phase 2 of the Duta-Ulu Kelang Expressway on Thursday.

The third phase of the 7.4km three-lane carriageway Sri Damansara Link is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

The elevated road, which opened at 5pm yesterday, goes past the National Heart Institute on Jalan Tun Razak, northwards along Jalan Pahang and connects to Jalan Gombak.

The link, which took four years to complete, is expected to ease traffic congestion on Jalan Tun Razak, the Jalan Pahang roundabout and the Jalan Duta interchange.

Konsortium Lebuhraya Utara-Timur (KL) Sdn Bhd (Kesturi) managing director Tan Sri Lim Keng Cheng said the new link will benefit motorists in the city.

“The link will help disperse traffic and provide connectivity to new areas,” he said.

Kesturi, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ekovest Bhd, is involved in construction, property development and infrastructure concession.