YB Anthony Loke Changed Plenty While Minister Of Transport

As the resignation of YB Anthony Loke hangs in the air, we look back at some of the good that has come out of his tenure in the ministry.

There has been a lot of back and forth around whether YB Anthony Loke will resign from his cabinet post as Minister of Transport. From what we can gather, Loke has submitted his resignation, but the Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has yet to accept his resignation. This whole sandiwara began when the Pardons Board gave ex-Prime Minister Najib Razak a conditional pardon, which would allow him to serve the remainder of his already reduced sentence in house arrest. Mind you, house arrest isn’t something that is part of Malaysian law, it’s something they made up just for this case in particular.

Needless to say, DAP has to draw the line somewhere. And yet, resignation feels like a pretty blunt instrument against such a willful and cunning opponent. I for one don’t see how losing an earnest and forthcoming minister like Loke benefits anybody. Sure, there are many parties who feel like he can do no right. Truth be told, it’s a pretty massive portfolio and one that does affect everyone, plus his place as the head of DAP paints a massive bulleye on him. I’m not here to say he’s perfect, but I can say that no Transport Minister in the last 15+ years has actually taken the job as seriously as Loke.

In his first term, within a month of taking office, he put procedures in place to save Malaysians lives as the Takata airbag scandal unfolded. Previous administrations had not lifted a finger despite knowing the danger. In fact, reports say that previous administrations under Barisan National’s rule wanted to charge car companies for access to JPJ data, which would have given them the tools to track down affected models. Loke’s Ministry shared this data freely, then put a system in place that stopped road tax renewals when faulty airbags were not replaced. But that was years ago, let’s look at some of his more systematic moves in recent years.

Digital Transformation of Road Transport and JPJ Services

One of the most widely felt reforms was the comprehensive modernization of the Road Transport Department (JPJ), dismantling decades of manual paperwork in favor of digital convenience:

• MyJPJ App & Paperless Credentials: Championed the phaseout of physical road tax stickers and physical plastic driving licenses in early 2023, migrating driver documentation to the MyJPJ digital application. The transition eliminated long queues at physical post offices and branch counters while generating substantial annual printing cost savings for the government.
• 10-Year Driving License Validity: Extended the maximum renewal eligibility of the Malaysian Driving License (LMM) from five years to 10 years, offering a 10% discount to incentivize decade-long renewals.
• JPJeBid Monetization: Automated vehicle number plate auctions through the digital JPJeBid system, eliminating runner cartels, restoring transparency, and generating record non-tax state revenue.
• EV Road Tax Restructuring: Revised the national electric vehicle road tax structure into progressive output-based tiers, ensuring long-term road tax costs for clean-energy vehicles remained significantly lower than combustion equivalents.
• Puspakom Monopoly Deregulation: Ended Puspakom’s long-standing monopoly over mandatory commercial vehicle inspections by introducing competitive, licensed inspection operators to improve service efficiency.

Public Rail Reliability and Station Operations

Loke took personal accountability for public rail standards, frequently conducting early-morning spot checks during peak rush hours without advance notice to expose non-functional station facilities, out-of-order escalators, and deferred train maintenance.

• Slashing Rail Disruption Rates: Under tightened maintenance KPIs mandated for transit operator Prasarana Malaysia, urban rail disruption incidents across LRT and MRT lines dropped significantly, recovering train frequencies on high-traffic lines like the Kelana Jaya LRT to a three-minute interval.
• Open Payment Gateways: Broke Touch ‘n Go’s decades-long single-provider monopoly across Klang Valley rail stations and public bus lines by mandating open payment acceptance, enabling commuters to tap credit cards, debit cards, and digital wallets.
• Commuter Safety & Amenities: Introduced designated women-only coaches across the MRT Kajang and Putrajaya lines to improve personal safety, alongside station upgrades restoring broken elevators and tactile paving for disabled passengers.

Targeted Commuter Welfare and Driver Protection

Recognizing public transit as an economic equalizer, Loke spearheaded targeted social safety nets tailored for everyday commuters, students, and gig workers:

• My50 Unlimited Travel Pass: Protected and prioritized federal funding for the RM50 monthly unlimited travel pass across rail and bus networks in the Klang Valley, providing affordable daily mobility for hundreds of thousands of urban workers.
• FlySiswa & Concession Passes: Established the FlySiswa initiative, delivering RM300 airfare vouchers for public tertiary students travelling between Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah, Sarawak, or Labuan. Through KTM Komuter and Shuttle Timuran, free train travel was extended to primary and secondary schoolchildren as well as Persons with Disabilities (OKU).
• Support for Transport Drivers: Championed subsidized SOCSO (SKSPS) social security protection for tens of thousands of taxi, e-hailing, and school bus operators, alongside extending the maximum vehicle service age limit from 10 to 15 years to ease replacement loan pressures.

Cross-Border Mega Projects and Logistics Acceleration

Beyond day-to-day operations, Loke’s leadership maintained forward momentum across long-gestation transport masterplans:

• RTS Link & ECRL: Maintained strict project management oversight to advance the Johor Bahru–Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link past the 80% completion mark toward cross-border operations, while keeping the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) tracking steadily toward its commissioning timeline.
• Penang Light Rail Transit (LRT): Secured the federal funding structure and engineering roadmap for the Mutiara LRT Line, resolving long-standing urban transit bottlenecks across Penang.
• Aviation & Maritime Expansion: Oversaw fleet renewals for Penang’s cross-strait passenger ferry service, streamlined airport passenger service charges, and advanced port expansion programs in Port Klang to preserve national transshipment competitiveness.