RFID is the future of toll payment on Malaysian highways. That didn’t quite go down well with early adopters and road users in general due to the fact that the pilot phase only involved open loop toll systems which meant you still needed a Touch ‘n Go card for closed loop systems.
That was extremely inconvenient and fueled the flames of discontent among the haters.
Well, that’s finally changing this 1 April 2020 as RFID payment finally comes full circle. Get it? Closed loop… full circle?
PLUS Malaysia has announced that it will accept RFID payment on all its 83 closed toll systems from the aforementioned date. This includes the entire North-South Expressway (NSE) as well as the East Coast Expressway (LPT2), where a total of 173 RFID lanes (including 131 dedicated RFID lanes) will be opened.
The move is in line with the government’s vision for a multi-lane free flow (MLFF) system, and marks the completion of a fully-RFID highway ecosystem in the country. Over the past 36 months of the pilot phase, the toll concessionaire has focused on harmonising the RFID system with Touch ‘n Go, which lead to the e-wallet-based toll payment method being accepted at all its 10 open-toll highways from 1 January and by April this year, the entire PLUS highway network.
However, toll payments using Touch ‘n Go card and SmartTAG will still be accepted for the time being.
Those who have yet to have an RFID tag installed on their vehicles, there are 17 locations along PLUS highways where you can do so. Nonetheless, seeing that the pilot phase has concluded as of February 15, RFID tags will no longer be free of charge but will instead cost RM35.