OPINION: Isn't It High Time LLM Stepped In And Address The RFID Congestion Issue?

A twitter user, @DARDOfficial tweeted a couple of days back calling for the Minister of Transport YB Anthony Loke to look into the RFID situation in Malaysia.

YB Anthony however was quick to point out that he is not the correct person in charge of matters with regards to the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM), but will bring this matter up to YB Alexander Nanta Linggi who is the current Public Work Minister.

The Malaysian RFID (Radio-frequency identification) situation seems to have not been getting any positive reviews ever since its introduction via a pilot program back in 2018 to the actual roll out on Jan 15 2022 at 10PM.

However, the roll out did not go as planned due to the fact that SmarTAG lanes were removed for RFID lanes, thus causing morning rush hour congestion to multiply with more and more toll users plagued with various issues when using the RFID lane and increasing outcries of which on social media.

Following which, all Smart Tag lanes were reinstated based on instruction from the government with merely one or two RFID lanes maintained for most users. This, in turn, led to long que’s for those opting for RFID payments. Now this seems to be a case of punishing the early adopters or those pushing for a change in the system if we may add.

It's been nearly one year since the RFID roll out program but there has been little or no improvement to this situation. Having said that if this was to continue, do you think the nation will be ready for the 2025 proposed Multi Lane Free Flow (MLFF) toll collection system implementation?

In our view, it seems that 2025 is being used as a yardstick by the government for a change as even the 10,000 EV chargers goal is pegged to the same year.

Now, how do we improve? Simple. For starters, keep the current system to eliminate sudden shock to current road users but start opening up more toll lanes that accept RFID. We know that is doable as we have got wind that toll concessionaires are ever ready to expand this method of payment, but only with the blessing of the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM).

Next, educate the road users, especially those already using the RFID system on why issues might crop up. Some - this writer included - have been using RFID with little to no issues. Most issues usually stem from three factors, the first being the users Touch ‘n Go (TnG) card having insufficient funds, secondly the RFID sticker is affixed in a location that the toll gantry is unable to pick up, and lastly the RFID sticker is damaged. For the second and third issues,  users should head to any TnG fitment centres and get their RFIDs replaced.

With the above sorted, the adoption of RFID would also steadily grow in line with the 2025 target. We can see from the long RFID lines today, usage is at a high point now, just as how the SmarTAG lane used to have long queues in its early days too. Furthermore, as compared to early last year where the outcry was due to lack of SmarTAG lanes, the outcries now stems from the lack of RFID lanes.

Another matter that could be addressed, which would involve multiple ministries, is the implementation of standardised government issued license plates with RFID chips, a la what’s implemented in Japan and Indonesia. This is more appropriate for our country as we do not have any vehicle end of life policy that makes it harder to implement built-in transponders compared to a simple reissuing of number plates. This would also help to eliminate other rampant issues such fancy number plates usage in the country.

Moving from the toll collection system, the same RFID unit can also be put for wider use such as parking payments, for instance. Now, this would be a topic for another day…