No instruction to raise toll, say highway concessionaires

The major highway concessionaire companies have claimed they are not aware of any impending increase in toll rates.

Speaking to Bernama today, representatives of these companies said there had been no official instruction or letter on any increase in toll charges although newspaper and online portal reports said an increase was imminent.

According to a spokesman of Lingkaran Trans Kota Sdn Bhd (Litrak) which maintains the Damansara-Puchong (LDP) and Sprint highways, usually an official instruction on a toll increase would be sent to the authorities such as the Public Works Department (JKR) and the Malaysian Highway Authority (MHA) before the company could implement the increase.

"We have not received any instruction from the MHA or JKR on any toll increase. The toll rates remain the same," he said.

A spokesman of Ekovest Berhad, which maintains the Duta-Ulu Klang Highway (Duke), said the company was still waiting for official instruction from the government before implementing any increase in toll charges.

A spokesman of Besraya (M) Sdn Bhd, which operates the Sungai Besi Highway, also said there had been no information on an increase in toll rates.

The head of corporate communications of PLUS Malaysia Berhad, Mohd Nizam Ismail, said an increase in toll charges hotly discussed in the social media did not involve the PLUS North-South Expressway.

Commenting on rumours of a toll rate increase, a spokesman of Anih Bhd, which operates the East Coast Highway, said there had been no official notification from the MHA but only reports in the print and electronic media.

"We knew about this from the newspapers. We have not received anything from the MHA. Usually the MHA will issue an official statement to us," she said.

In a media statement issued three days ago, the MHA did not mention any instruction to concessionaire companies on any increase in toll rates.

"As such, any statement or report on toll rates is not true," said its director-general, Datuk Ismail Md Salleh, adding that for now, the toll rates for all highways remained unchanged.

Meanwhile, Works Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, when contacted, said an official statement on whether there would be an increase or otherwise in toll charges would be issued soon.

According to media reports, the ministry was to have tabled a proposal for an increase in toll charges for Cabinet approval today, involving several roads in the Klang Valley as well as the Kulim-Butterworth Expressway and the East Coast Highway 1.

According to the reports, if the Cabinet gives its approval, the increases would be between 20 sen and RM1, effective from August.

It was reported that the government will be required to pay as much as RM558.69 million in compensation to concessionaire companies if it decides not to increase the toll charges along 20 highways this year.