I ‘m INTERESTED to the prime minister’s request to the Economic Planning Unit to seek a comprehensive solution to the toll issue and to look into various proposals on the takeover of highway concessionaire PLUS Expressways Bhd, operator of the North-South Expressway (NSE).

Everybody keeps saying that travel on the NSE is a burden financially. However, the urban highway issue is more pressing. The government should look into BESRAYA, GRAND SAGA, SPRINT, NKVE, NPE and the SMART tunnel where urbanites have to pay toll everyday, sometimes three or four times a day.

The amount of toll paid at these highways adds up to a bigger amount compared to what is paid on the NSE.

In addition, the NSE is not a highway that the average consumer uses regularly. The biggest beneficiary of lower toll or abolition of toll on the NSE would  be businesses rather than the man in the street who does not frequently go on long-distance trips. Therefore, priority should be given to tolled links which ring the Klang Valley.

By only privatising PLUS, what message is the government sending if it does not have a follow-up plan for other toll roads?