Push back free entry period for foreign vehicles

I support Mr Ramoo Puru's proposal ("Do away with free vehicle entry from Malaysia"; Monday).

Cars under the Off-Peak Car scheme are allowed on the road only after 7pm, and most Electronic Road Pricing gantries stop charging motorists only after 8pm. So why should foreign-registered cars be allowed on our roads for free from 5pm and contribute to congestion?

Adjusting the free entry period to run from 8pm to 4am is reasonable, and there should be vehicle entry fees on weekends to contain the expected higher traffic volume from across the Causeway, bearing in mind that high certificate of entitlement premiums and other fees are used to deter vehicle ownership and usage here.

In fact, the entry fee for motorcycles should be doubled to $8, as the space they take up on our roads is not much different from that taken up by cars, after taking into account road safety requirements.

Soo Weng Keong

This article was first published on Oct 8, 2014.
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