Starting this month, foreign citizens using the free bus service in areas under the jurisdiction of the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) must pay the 90 sen fee.
Mayor Mohamad Azhan Md Amir said the decision was made on the instructions of the state government.
“This free bus service was meant as a priority for local residents, but we discovered many of its users are foreigners. So they will have to pay for it.
“Naturally we expect complaints over this, but nonetheless they ought to be charged,” he said.
Mohamad Azhan was speaking to the press after presenting RM250 donations to 60 underprivileged families, in conjunction with the upcoming Chinese New Year celebrations at Dewan MBPJ SS3/14 in Taman Sentosa, earlier today.
He added there are 22 free buses operating in Petaling Jaya, with an annual RM6 million in operating costs thus far.
“If we charge foreign passengers, we can use the profits to help cover the cost of operating free buses in the future.
“So far we have been using our own budget, including from the MBPJ transport trust fund,” Mohamad Azhan said.
