MoT‘s Anthony Loke announces new overloading law to include shippers, receivers, and factories that pressure transporters to overload.
All Players Must Create a New Culture of Safety – Anthony Loke
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said that his ministry is working on amendments to allow enforcement not only against drivers and transport companies, but also shippers (consignors) and receivers of goods (consignees) involved in overloading vehicles.
The statement came a few days after the Ministry of Transport (MoT) officially declared war on overloading vehicles. Through the Road and Transport Department‘s (JPJ) special operations, the MoT is currently conducting operations to curb overloading. Unlike in the past where offenders were only given RM400 fine, current policy states that repeat offenders risk losing their vehicle permits and even company licenses.
However, the ministry will not stop there. Last week, Minister Loke wrote on his Facebook page that the MoT will not only target drivers and logistics companies, but also all players within the ecosystem that have been enabling the culture of overloading to prosper, such as consignors and consignees.
“After MoT introduced a new system where repeated overload offences would have their vehicle permit or driver’s license revoked, some argue why the focus is given to heavy vehicles. I want to let you know that our focus is not only on drivers and heavy vehicle companies,” the minister wrote.
“MoT is drafting a law that shippers and receivers of goods such as factories and quarry owners will also be held liable if they put pressure on transport companies to overload. All players in the transportation ecosystem need to play their respective roles in creating a new culture of safety,” he added.
On October 22, 2025, the JPJ then announced that it had held an engagement session on overloading issues with representatives from logistics associations and industry players. The agency stated that the session aimed to “strengthen understanding and strategic cooperation between the government and the industry”.
Speaking in the session was Seri Jana Santhiran Muniayan, the Secretary-General of the MoT. He said, according to JPJ‘s official announcement, that “overloading issue is not merely a technical violation, but a matter of moral responsibility and public safety”.
He also explained that “with close cooperation between the government and industry players, efforts to strengthen the culture of compliance are expected to reduce the rate of offences and minimise the risk of accidents involving heavy vehicles”.
The engagement session was held two days after the JPJ announced that it had seized 28 lorries for carrying excessive load during the first three days of the operation against overloading, which began October 14.
Prior to that, from 2023 until September 2025, JPJ had issued a total of 130,643 summonses and investigation papers related to overloading offences, with Johor, Selangor, and Pahang recording the highest rates.
