SHAH ALAM: There will be a double celebration for Klang and Shah Alam folk at the stroke of midnight on Jan 1.
Not only are they ushering in the 2018 New Year, it will also mark the end of having to fork out money for toll fare at the Batu 3 and Sungai Rasau toll plazas along the Federal Highway.
This came following an announcement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak during the 2018 Budget tabling, that toll collection at the Batu 3 and Sungai Rasau plazas, located about 10 kilometres apart, will be abolished.
Many Klang and Shah Alam folk are beaming ear to ear as they count down to Jan 1, where paying RM1.10 at the Batu 3 toll plaza and RM1 at Sungai Rasau toll plaza for private cars will be a thing of the past.
The toll collections have been in place since May 1993, by private concession company, Plus Expressways.
The Batu 3 toll plaza records a daily traffic of 150,000 vehicles while the Sungai Rasau toll plaza sees 110,000 vehicles passing through daily.
Salesman Mohd Safiy Hafifi Mohamad is among thousands of motorists who are looking forward to traveling toll free from Klang to Shah Alam and towards Kuala Lumpur.
The 29-year-old from Kampung Delek, Klang said his job requires him to travel to Shah Alam and Kuala Lumpur daily and paying the toll charges were a huge expense.
"I spend close to RM200 a month commuting between Klang and Kuala Lumpur for work and that is not a small amount. I am relieved that we will soon be spared from paying both tolls.
"I feel the money could be put to better use such as upgrading my family's insurance package," said Safiy when met near the Sungai Rasau toll plaza today.
Business development executive May Loh, who lives in Bukit Jelutong and works in Bandar Bukit Raja, said she would choose to travel via the Federal Highway more when the toll plazas are removed.
"At the moment, I use another highway to get to Bandar Bukit Raja where I pay close to RM2 for a one-way trip. However, since the Sungai Rasau toll plaza will be removed, I will prefer to travel via the Federal Highway as it is free. It is a good move by the government as it helps to alleviate our financial burden," said the 27-year-old.
Ellia Irmiza Zakaria, a sales manager from Klang, said she plans to take pictures of the Sungai Rasau toll plaza before it is demolished by the authorities.
"I was born in Klang and have lived here all my life so the Sungai Rasau and Batu Tiga toll plazas are very familiar sights to me. I have always told my friends who are visiting from other states that once they exit the Sungai Rasau toll, it means they have arrived in Klang, the royal town.
"I will miss seeing the toll plazas. It will be strange at first, I guess, as I pass through it every day to get to work. I will seize the chance to take pictures and selfies at the toll plazas before it is torn down," said the 35-year-old.
Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) student Nur Balqis Amanina said she will no longer have to worry about paying RM1 at the Sungai Rasau toll plaza twice a day.
The 24-year-old actuarial science student, who lives in Klang and travels daily to her campus, said it has been a practice for her to put aside RM70 for toll expenses since she started studying at the university two years ago.
"I have classes every day and on weekends, I am required to attend courses and seminars. With the allowance I receive from my mother, I have to manage my finances properly so that I have enough to pay for the toll.
"I am happy that I will be able to save the RM70 and use it to buy books for my studies," she said.