Imagine the morning rush hour. Instead of passing smoothly through the RFID lane at the Damansara–Puchong Expressway (LDP) toll plaza, you find yourself stuck in a queue for five minutes — barely moving.
Most motorists divert to the left, as three right lanes are reserved for SmartTAG users. Out of eight to 10 lanes for Touch ’n Go cards and three SmartTAG lanes, only one lane is allocated for RFID.
Despite repeated feedback from users, the setup remains unchanged. I was informed that the decision was to maintain a single RFID lane.
This is puzzling. RFID was introduced to ease congestion, yet issues such as insufficient e-wallet balances or faulty tags are common. Limiting users to one lane is clearly inadequate — especially when each RFID sticker costs RM35.
This matter was formally raised with Works Minister Alexander Nanta Linggi and Malaysian Highway Authority (MHA) director-general Sazali Harun on Dec 15 last year. To date, there has been no response.
The silence from both the ministry and the system suggests a perfect alignment of inaction: one constrained by bureaucracy, the other by poor system design — and both seemingly content to do nothing.
Litrak must improve its toll plaza configuration. Other highway concessionaires, including DASH, PLUS and DUKE, have already implemented at least two RFID lanes at each toll plaza, proving that better solutions are both feasible and practical.
I am writing to the press because daily commuters deserve better. RFID should reduce congestion — not become another bottleneck.
Attached are two videos showing congestion at the LDP toll plaza. The accompanying photo also highlights that DASH already provides two RFID lanes, underscoring how far LDP has fallen behind.