Highway concessionaire PLUS has announced that by the end of this year, in addition to Touch ‘n Go (TnG) and SmartTAG, all PLUS highway users will be able to use their credit or debit card for radio-frequency identification (RFID) toll payments, Berita Harian reports.
According to PLUS MD Datuk Azman Ismail, the company is currently in the process of upgrading its infrastructure, which when completed later this year will allow consumers to link a credit card or debit card to RFID PLUS. It is also in the process of enabling TnG eWallet as a method of payment.
He said that with these new payment options, PLUS users will no longer have to resort to kiosks or counters to add value to the TnG card or face issues when there is insufficient balance in their card. Azman said that the method could help alleviate congestion at toll plazas.
A major contributor to congestion at toll plazas were cards with insufficient balance, with many users often forgetting to reload their card. This is because consumers will usually leave their TnG card in the car and not carry it with them, as opposed to a wallet or smartphone, he told the publication.
“As we move forward, we are in the process of creating more payment options by making debit and credit cards as payment modes in the hope of solving the congestion problem on the freeway,” he said.
Azman also said that aside from expansion of toll payment options, PLUS is currently upgrading 1,400 closed-circuit camera (CCTV) videos on all its highways to ultra high-definition (UHD) cameras, with 10% of the work done so far. The new system will be equipped with video analytics software to provide traffic data and sources of congestion to PLUS, which will then be able to deliver messages and relay traffic information to road users in faster and more detailed fashion.
-paultan