SEPANG (March 20): An open payment system for transport services, especially those under Prasarana Malaysia Bhd, will be implemented soon, Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook said.

He said this would essentially allow commuters to use their credit or debit cards, in addition to Touch 'n Go cards, to pay for public transport services. 

“This will give users other choices besides Touch 'n Go,” he said in response to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s statement on Sunday (March 19) that the government will review Touch 'n Go’s monopoly on toll road payments on the grounds that its system "lacks significant progress and development".

Speaking to the media at the launch of the Plaza Premium First and Plaza Premium Lounge at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) here on Monday, Loke said Anwar’s statement does not mean Touch 'n Go services will be ended. 

“We do not intend to end Touch 'n Go services, so please don’t say that we are trying to kill off Touch 'n Go. It’s just that Touch 'n Go will be one of several payment options rather than the only one,” he said, adding that users had been lamenting that they were short of choices when paying for public transport services and highway tolls. 

Loke said the PM had instructed that the matter be discussed in the Cabinet, and that the matter needs an urgent solution to make room for other payment systems.

He said Prasarana had been instructed to implement an open payment method, and they need time to integrate the system.

Public transport services that currently use Touch 'n Go as a mode of payment include Prasarana bus services, the Light Rail Transit (LRT), Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), and Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB). 

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