The Malta Environment and Planning Authority yesterday launched a public consultation process for open storage areas, in a determined attempt to introduce some order into an unregulated practice.

Mepa is hoping to identify a number of zones around the island to accommodate the parking and storage of large vehicles, trailers, cranes and vessels, among others.

At a news conference, Mepa officials admitted it was high time to regularise a practice which was often unsightly and led to bad neighbourliness.

So far, Mepa has always tried to limit the use of land for this purpose to industrial zones or unused quarries, but the huge increase in these vehicles has led to illegal parking.

John Gauci, head of the Strategic Planning Unit, explained the extent of the problem.

There were around 8,000 heavy vehicles with a load of over 5,000 kgs, he said. The number of trailers was estimated at 448, with three main operators providing trailer parks. Nearly 4,300 boats were registered with the Malta Maritime Authority, with just 1,635 berthing sites available.

The shortfall in storage space has given rise to ad hoc sites, large garages in residential areas, and in many cases large vehicles are simply being parked in the streets.

Mr Gauci said Mepa was hoping to draw up a series of guidelines after the consultation process, including the provision of hard standing facilities, such as regional bus depots.

The document will outline a series of characteristics to establish which land would qualify for such a scheme, including design and location.

Mepa director general Godwin Cassar promised that the earmarked sites would not double up as junkyards or derelict sites, but would merely cater for operational vehicles.

The document is available on Mepa's website. Submissions and comments will be received until June 28.

www.mepa.org.mt

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.