PETALING JAYA: An end to congestion caused by toll booths? Yes, says Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu. 

Samy Vellu said the government planned to do away with toll booths by the end of next year. However, toll will still be collected.

Toll booths will be replaced by the Multi Lane Free Flow Gantry System. Implementation of the gantry system will begin next March.

Samy Vellu said at a press conference: "The system will help alleviate traffic congestion as it will replace toll booths, which are the main cause of traffic jams in the Klang Valley." 

Under the system, toll charges will be deducted electronically as special tag-bearing vehicles pass gantry bars mounted with sensors at strategic points along the toll highways.

Each motorist would have to subscribe to a device which will relay information to a Central Clearing House (CCH) which in turn will remit the toll charges to the various highway concessionaires based on the toll rates.

The CCH would also manage a closed-circuit television camera (CCTV) system to monitor road safety and inform the police of errant drivers with a high level of accuracy, he added.

He said the gantry system was expected to be fully operational by the end of next year in the Klang Valley.

Samy Vellu, who is also MIC president, said this at the launch of the Business Development Seminar for Malaysian Indian Micro/ Small Businesses here yesterday. About 1,500 Indians attended the seminar.

He said: "The MIC plans to assist 5,000 Indians involved in small or micro businesses over the next few years.

"It has successfully made available loans for more than 4,000 businesses through the Bank Simpanan Nasional programme over the last few years."

He added that the event would spur growth by creating awareness about micro-business training and development and enable Indians to be self reliant and build on their competencies.

Samy Vellu also launched a book entitled A Guide to Micro Credit Financing in Malaysia, which details the steps to obtain business loans and explains good business practices.

He said the book would be translated into Bahasa Malaysia to be shared with the Malay community.

Tan Sri K.S. Nijhar, MIC economic bureau chairman and Subang Jaya MP, said the seminar was to offer business guidelines for more than 40,000 Indian small-businessmen on handling the problem of a lack of capital.

He quoted a recent 18-month study conducted on 3,000 Indian businesses nationwide which showed about 1,800 of the small-businessmen were not able to expand their businesses as they could not get loans.

The one-day event was organised by the MIC economic bureau and the Social Strategic Foundation.