The Road Transport Department (JPJ) has confirmed that the trial for the point-to-point speed detection Automated Awareness Safety System (AwAS) has not yet begun. According to a report by Free Malaysia Today, the office of the Transport Ministry stated that no date has been set for the pilot project, with updates to be announced in due course.
These new cameras, designed to calculate the average speed of vehicles between two points, were supposedly initially scheduled for a trial run starting in June 2025, according to Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook earlier this year.
As reported previously, the new AwAS system will be trialled on two main highways, namely the Karak Highway, specifically from the Genting Sempah tunnel to the Gombak rest stop, and the North-South Expressway (PLUS), from the Senawang toll plaza to the Simpang Ampat (Alor Gajah) toll plaza.
JPJ has also stated that there are plans to install the new system at more accident-prone areas, such as the notorious stretch between the Menora tunnel and the Sungai Perak rest stop on the PLUS highway, in the future.
RELATED: JPJ unveils new physical driving licence design, but only for those driving overseas
Compared to the current AwAS cameras, which issue a summons if a vehicle exceeds the speed limit within its detection zone, the new system utilises artificial intelligence (AI) to calculate a vehicle’s average speed and travel time between two points.
If a vehicle reaches a location faster than it would if it were adhering to the speed limit, a traffic summons will be automatically issued based on its vehicle registration number.
Additionally, Transport secretary-general M. Jana Santhiran has added that the system will be able to determine if drivers stopped their vehicles to extend their journey time and avoid being caught speeding, but did not elaborate further.
This new point-to-point speed monitoring enforcement system is not new to the region. Similar systems are already deployed in neighbouring Thailand, where they are used to monitor vehicles’ average speeds on highways, in residential areas, and school zones.
