MLFF expected to help authorities pursue toll evaders
Highway concessionaires are introducing number plate recognition technology, with easing traffic congestion among its aims.
Motorists who avoid paying tolls could be easier to trace under a fully implemented Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF) system, Minister of Works Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi said on Oct 29 in Port Klang.
Alexander said information gathered through MLFF would support efforts to identify offenders and pursue claims against them. He was speaking at a road safety CSR programme involving Westports and the Public Works Department (JKR).
Concessionaires are rolling out Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) payment technology, partly to ease congestion, he said. The Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM) monitors how effectively their toll systems operate on behalf of the Ministry of Works (KKR).
In remarks on Oct 13, Alexander said MLFF would incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) upon full implementation. He also said his team was collaborating with enforcement bodies, including the Road Transport Department (JPJ) and Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM), to tackle toll evasion.
Media reports on Oct 23 said toll evasion costs the concessionaire and operator of the Kuala Lumpur-Karak Expressway (KLK) and East Coast Expressway Phase 1 (LPT1) over RM20,000 annually. AFA Systems and Services Sdn Bhd general manager Ismaliza Ibrahim was reported as putting the organisation’s yearly tally at approximately 3,000 cases.
Under Section 8 of the Federal Roads (Private Management) Act 1984, a toll-evasion conviction carries a minimum fine of RM2,000 and a maximum of RM5,000, or a prison term of up to one year.
