Malaysia’s Dewan Rakyat passed the Road Transport (Amendment) Act 2026 after its second and third readings in late June 2026, legalising new offences including street racing and increasing penalties for existing violations [1, 2].

The Bill, tabled for its first reading on June 22, 2026, adds Section 42A criminalising street racing and speed testing on public roads as standalone offences [3, 4, 5]. First-time offenders face fines ranging from RM2,000 to RM10,000, imprisonment for up to two years, or both [3, 6, 7, 4, 2, 5]. Repeat offenders risk fines between RM5,000 and RM20,000, and jail terms of up to five years, or both. Transport Minister Anthony Loke said, "For second and subsequent convictions, the penalties are a fine of between RM5,000 and RM20,000, imprisonment of up to five years, or both" [6].

The Bill also raises minimum compound fines for various offences from RM300 to RM500, to take effect January 1, 2029, covering violations such as failure to display vehicle registration, driving without a valid licence, speeding, and disobeying traffic signals [3, 7, 4, 5, 2]. Penalties for driving while disqualified increased to up to three years in jail or fines between RM3,000 and RM10,000, up from previous maximums of one year and RM5,000 [3, 5].

New powers granted to police and road transport officers include authority to control traffic and classify obstruction or assault of enforcement officers as arrestable offences with high fines and jail terms [3, 6, 2]. Clause 28 introduces stiffer punishment for false statements, allowing fines up to RM200,000 or 10 years imprisonment [3].

The Act incorporates measures to regulate electric and modified vehicles alongside provisions for foreign and cross-border vehicles, reflecting a push towards digitalisation of road transport regulations [2].

Minister Loke said, "The need for these amendments is clear. In 2025, Malaysia recorded 6,537 deaths from road accidents. Of that number, 4,340 fatalities, or 66.4 per cent, involved motorcyclists and their passengers. These statistics show that road safety remains a major national challenge that requires more effective legislation, enforcement and education" [2]. He added the new offences "would allow authorities to take action without having to wait for an accident, injury or loss of life to occur" [6].

Further amendments to introduce accident victim compensation for cases involving drunk or reckless drivers are scheduled for the October 2026 parliamentary sitting [4].