HULU LANGAT: The government’s announcement that it will kick-start negotiations with Gamuda Berhad to take over several toll concessions has nothing to do with ongoing campaigning for the Semenyih by-election, said PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The Port Dickson MP said he was informed of the proposal several weeks ago by Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.
Anwar stressed that the development is quite significant, as it is the first step towards doing away with toll collection in the country, as promised by Pakatan Harapan during the 14th general election.
“(The) takeover of the concessions (will be) done in order to alleviate the people’s burden.
“I do not know (if it has anything to do with the by-election). The plan was communicated to me by the Finance Minister two to three weeks ago.
“But I do not think (there is a link),” Anwar told reporters when met after a ceramah at Kampung Baru Semenyih, on Friday night.
In a statement today, the government said that it had commenced talks with
Gamuda Berhad to negotiate the acquisition of highway concessions in which the company has a majority stake.
The highways are the Lebuhraya Damansara Puchong (LDP), Sistem Penyuraian Trafik
KL Barat (Sprint), Lebuhraya Shah Alam (Kesas) and the Smart Tunnel.
“Upon successful takeover of the highways, the government intends to abolish the existing toll mechanism.
“In its place, a ‘congestion charge’ will be introduced where commuters will only pay a
‘congestion charge’ equivalent to the existing toll for six hours of ‘peak’ period a day,” it said.
At the same time, commuters can travel on highways for free during off-peak hours, from 11pm to 5am.
“During other ‘normal’ travelling hours, commuters will enjoy discounted rates of up to 30 per cent, compared to existing toll rates.
“The revenue collected from the ‘congestion charge’ will go towards the operations and
maintenance of the highways and repayment of borrowing,” the government added.