The Director-General of Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM), Datuk Mohd Hadzmir Yusoff recently claimed that new highways need to be built to accommodate the 600,000 new vehicles registered last year. This logic breaks down because it traps Malaysia in an endless cycle where every increase in car ownership is met with even more road expansion. Rather than solving congestion, this approach creates the conditions for even more traffic in the future.
This is not a new problem. Urban planners call this induced demand, where expanding highways may temporarily ease congestion but eventually leads to more vehicles on the road. As travel feels faster and more convenient, more people choose to drive while public transport remains neglected. After billions are spent on new roads, traffic congestion often returns to where it started.
The government should seriously consider imposing congestion charges in heavily congested areas such as Klang Valley. Cities like Singapore and London have already implemented such systems to discourage unnecessary trips during peak hours and to encourage the use of public transport. Revenues collected from these charges can then be relocated into improving our trains and buses, pedestrian walkways and first mile and last mile connections.
As a starting point, the government could pilot this in central business district (CBD) areas where public transport coverage is already relatively strong and connected which allows congestion pricing to be tested in a more viable environment while still reducing traffic in the most critical zones.
Admittedly, public transport in many parts of Klang Valley is still not fully reliable. However, this should not be a reason to delay action. Congestion charges could help to reduce car dependency while also generating funding to urgently improve our public transport services. Simultaneously, the government must immediately accelerate upgrades to the reliability and frequency of our buses and trains so that commuters are given practical alternatives to driving,
There is also a bigger issue around the fuel subsidy debate. Phasing out fuel subsidies for the ultra wealthy is always reasonable, but these savings should be reinvested into public transport so ordinary Malaysians are not punished for a system they were forced to rely on. Most workers drive not because they want to, but because public transport remains unreliable or inaccessible. The real solution is to reduce dependence on private vehicles altogether, rather than just making commuting more expensive.
Work from home policies should also be expanded beyond the public sector and GLCs, where they were introduced on April 15 to reduce oil consumption as a response to the global energy crisis. These policies can also help ease congestion by reducing the number of cars on the road during peak hours. Private sector employers, especially in office based industries, should adopt similar arrangements where physical attendance is unnecessary. Reducing unnecessary travel is far cheaper and faster than waiting years for new highways to be completed.
Behind every new highway project lies a simple question: who is this really built for? Workers lose hours stuck in traffic while paying for tolls, fuel, car maintenance, and rising living costs. Meanwhile, highway concessionaires and developers continue profiting from a transport model that keeps Malaysians dependent on private vehicles. Transport policy should focus on moving people efficiently, not protecting corporate profits.
Najmi Indot
Sources:
https://transitmalaysia.com/2025/03/12/transit-malaysias-statement-on-congestion-charge-proposal/
https://theedgemalaysia.com/node/799784
https://th.boell.org/en/2022/07/22/traffic-malaysia
https://bernama.com/en/news.php//general/politics/news.php?id=2553363