KUALA SELANGOR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said tolls in Kuala Lumpur can be renegotiated when the country's finances are stronger.
He said abolishing tolls would incur further expenses and that there were agreements in place with the concessionaire.
"(The issue of) tolls is something I inherited. But when we close them, we have to spend for compensation as there are agreements already in place.
"I agree with you. Many people have complained about the tolls in Kuala Lumpur. But what do we do now? It takes time.
"The country's finances must be strong and only then can we renegotiate. Right now, we are bound to agreements with the toll companies," Anwar said in response to an audience statement that there were too many tolls in the city during the Dialog Madani forum at the closing ceremony of the Central Zone Madani Rakyat Programme here.
On Nov 16 last year, it was reported that the government has initiated negotiations with highway concessionaires over toll restructuring involving 19 highways.
Deputy Works Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Mohamad said the 19 highways are under the management of Amanat Lebuhraya Rakyat Berhad (ALR), Gamuda Bhd, Projek Lintasan Kota Holdings Sdn Bhd (Prolintas), IJM Corporation Bhd, ANIH Bhd, and PLUS Malaysia Bhd.
This comes after the opposition had asked about the government's steps in reviewing all highway concession agreements and negotiations to obtain the best prices to achieve an 18 per cent toll rate reduction for the North-South Expressway, including the East Coast Highway Phase 2 (LPT 2).