I've been pondering over the question why I need roughly two hours to arrive to a place when going there by car takes no more than 15-20 minutes. For its size, theoretically Malta should have the least of problems comparing to other cosmopolitan EU countries in managing issues such as the public transport system.

Being very small by comparison, one does expect Malta if not to excel to be at least satisfactory in providing its residents with an efficient public transport system. It is unheard of in our modern era of communications and technical advances that one spends 80 - 100 minutes for a 20 -25 kilometre stretch in commuting! Moreover, 30 minutes (60 minutes for a bus after 6.30 p.m.!) of waiting time is simply unacceptable since the majority of the inhabitants as a rule work at the other end of the island, thus rendering commuting a necessity and not a luxury.

The bus terminus in Valletta is, to put it nicely, ghastly. It is difficult to describe the state it is in without a fair amount of disgust. I'd like to share what I see every time I go there: filthy rubbish bins with the paint pealing off them; the lovely fountain full of plastic cups, bottles, papers, and other waste swimming in and outside it; numerous cigarette butts and other rubbish scattered around making it hard to believe the station is ever cleaned. The walls of the drivers' booths once pure white stones are now halfway smeared grey in colour. If you have the misfortune to be passing by or, worse yet, to have to stand by the end near the public convenience you'll have to seriously pinch your nose in order to counter-attack the stench abounding in the vicinity.

There's a complete lack of basic facilities for the commuters' comfort - not one single bench, not one single waiting room or shelter to protect the waiting (for as many as 60 minutes) people from the blazing sun in August or the pouring rain in January. The public convenience closes at 5 p.m., which leaves the terminus without a basic toilet for hours until the last bus leaves.

I expect the commuters of modern European Malta to demand, and not settle for less, the total modernisation and refurbishment of the shabby main bus station as well as the upgrading of the services themselves - the notoriously high waiting time and the infamous bus drivers' rudeness, especially on popular routes such as Sliema and St. Julians.

I shall quote one of the ministry's "Strategic Objectives and Priorities" (www.mudr.gov.mt):

Provide the public with sustainable, efficient and cost-effective public transport services and accessible infrastructure that caters for the nation's travelling, economic, environmental and health needs.

When will we, the commuters, see tangible results streaming from a supposedly successful implementation of this objective? Or are the latter as productive as the "obligatory instruction and customer care courses for bus drivers" (as stated on the ministry's website in the "Land Transport section"), only the thought of which can make the most apathetic foreign student smile?

The biggest question, however, remains: What kind of consumers put up with such a poor and unacceptable service overall? Or all we care to raise voices about is to proclaim who will win the next election (just so they continue their neglect and futile policies on issues directly affecting the residents such as the Maltese public transport system)?