JOHOR BAHRU — Malaysia has collected nearly RM88 million (S$26.8 million) in road charges from vehicles entering Johor from Singapore between January and September 2024, and the figure is expected to surpass RM100 million by the end of the year, according to Malaysia’s Transport Minister Anthony Loke. This would exceed the RM91 million collected in 2023.
Speaking in Parliament on Monday, Mr. Loke revealed that 4,397,229 vehicles crossed the border from Singapore into Malaysia during the first nine months of the year, contributing significantly to the country’s road charge revenue. All foreign-registered vehicles—except motorcycles—entering Malaysia from Singapore are required to pay a RM20 fee.
Mr. Loke provided a detailed breakdown of the daily vehicle crossings through the Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine (CIQ) complexes at Sultan Iskandar Building (BSI) and Sultan Abu Bakar Complex (KSAB). On average, 89,818 trips were made daily, including:
Cars: 31,194
Motorcycles: 53,000
Buses: 3,531
Lorries: 2,093
The figures include both Malaysia- and Singapore-registered vehicles.
Responding to questions about the use of road charge collections to improve public transport in Johor Bahru, Mr. Loke explained that the revenue from road charges goes into the government’s consolidated revenue account, with RM5 from every RM20 collected being returned to the Johor state government. He also indicated that discussions with the Finance Ministry are ongoing to channel road charge revenue into public transport improvements.
“We certainly need more buses and an additional budget, particularly with the ongoing RTS (Rapid Transit System) project,” Mr. Loke said.
The RTS Link, a 4km light rail transit system connecting Bukit Chagar station in Johor Bahru with Woodlands North station in Singapore, is currently under construction and is expected to be operational by January 2027. With a capacity of 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction, the RTS Link is projected to alleviate congestion at the Johor-Singapore Causeway, the world’s busiest border crossing.